DePasquale, at final council meeting as manager, hears praise for his accessibility and fiscal savvy
City Manager Louis A. DePasquale speaks Wednesday. (Photo: Tyler Motes)
Cambridge began saying farewell to City Manager Louis A. DePasquale on Monday at his final meeting presenting to the City Council. His term, which began in 2016, ends with his retirement July 5.
DePasquale, who grew up in East Cambridge, has been in city government for 47 years.
“You’ve been such a dedicated public servant, and you’ve been tireless over this last half-century in helping Cambridge become a stronger city,” said Mayor Sumbul Siddiqui during the final regular council meeting before a two-month summer break. At a scheduled Aug. 1 special meeting, the City Manager’s Office will be represented by either acting city manager Owen O’Riordan, on loan from leading the Department of Public Works, or new city manager Yi-an Huang.
Remarks by councillors highlighted DePasquale’s reputation for caring about Cambridge and engaging with the community. “Your heart has always been here with the residents of Cambridge,” vice mayor Alanna Mallon said.
“You know you’ve made it when you’re known by one name – Madonna, Prince, Louis – and there’s a reason for that. I sort of say that as a joke, but there’s actually something behind that,” councillor Marc McGovern said. “And what’s behind that is your accessibility, your being out in the community and people feeling like they can approach you and talk to you not as the person who runs the city, but as Louis.”
DePasquale, surrounded by fellow officials, cuts the ribbon Wednesday on the $46 million Foundry 101 community building in East Cambridge. (Photo: Tyler Motes)
While the tone of DePasquale’s farewell speeches from city councillors was friendly – and the officials joked that Monday’s speeches were just a preview for the gushing that would be done at a private Tuesday breakfast – there has been tension over the years.
Recently, some city councillors were frustrated when DePasquale sent $5 million in returned green line extension funds back into the free cash pool, ignoring an order that it be used to improve public transit – just one of many orders his office would ignore as it prioritized other work.
He has also been hostile toward the idea of a municipal broadband network, driving a wedge between the council over the past several years. Councillors rebelled by voting against the budget for the city’s Information Technology Department in 2020 and threatened to rebel again in 2021 when a promised feasibility study was not conducted.
“I don’t want anyone to think that Louis DePasquale was a yes man, because he wasn’t – he could go toe-to-toe. One of my favorite things to say about him and his predecessors is that they could hold on to a penny so tight it would make Lincoln cry. Because you didn’t want us just to spend money willy-nilly, because you remember the lean days,” councillor E. Denise Simmons said. (Still, Simmons’ praise to the manager that “I don’t know if I’ve ever seen you lose your temper” scrubbed away a few outbursts from the past years, and one walkout.)
Fiscal responsibility
As the city’s budget director from 1982 to 2002 and then assistant city manager for fiscal affairs, DePasquale played a major role in a development boom and rebuilding of city finances under manager Robert W. Healy. It led to a streak of top scores from rating agencies and mountainous free cash fund, which began setting records at least back in 2010; as of the most recent budget book, free cash stood at $214.4 million, in addition to $197 million in excess levy capacity and $48.5 million in debt stabilization funds. The city is able to do everything from house the homeless during the worst of the pandemic to spend $299 million on the Tobin Montessori and Vassal Lane Upper School complex even while remaking municipal offices and revamping creaky firehouses.
“During my time as [education] union president, my job was made easy because I never had to worry about the fiscal stability of the city, we never had to worry about layoffs. We were always well-funded as a school district, and employees had great benefits and great salaries,” said councillor Paul Toner, elected last year after a focus on education. “My wife and children have benefited as residents of the city, and I’m greatly appreciative of that.”
The Covid pandemic took a toll on city finances and others stresses tested relationships, and “this was a tough few years,” councillor Dennis Carlone said. “And it’s pretty amazing how well things went.”
DePasquale speaks
DePasquale shows off a retirement present in a Tuesday tweet by vice mayor Alanna Mallon.
In his own remarks Monday, DePasquale thanked city employees and expressed gratitude toward Siddiqui and former mayors McGovern and Simmons for their leadership. He thanked the council for placing their trust in him.
“I want to thank the residents of our city for placing high expectations on all of us,” DePasquale said. “It has been a pleasure for me to have the opportunity to meet and discuss many of the important issues that you are facing.”
The council unanimously approved a resolution to congratulate DePasquale on his retirement – and councillor Patty Nolan hinted at dropping in on his home on Blair Pond in the Cambridge Highlands for lunch and advice. “You are amazing,” she said.
Now that he’s left the building, let’s move on with someone more effective. While he worked hard to keep the city’s credit rating tip top, he wasn’t one to get stuff done.
Louie has been a great civil servant. I havent agreed with some policy choices, but on the whole an admirable record of service!
“Toto i don’t think we’re in Kansas anymore”
@ Jerry Vandesic
The city’s credit rating continues to be “tip top”
as you say. Unfortunately, the same rating agencies (e.g. Moody’s) have made many rating mistakes in the past.
Take a look at by far the largest liabilities that the city has i.e. post retirement health benefits and pensions. The funds for these two off balance sheet liabilities are precariously close to what is required. A year or two or three of down markets will expose the falseness of the high credit rating. And because the assumptions used for the calculation of the liabilities are overly optimistic, it might not take down markets to expose the inadequacy of the funds.
Does anyone on the City Council care? Did Mr. DePasquale care? No, in both cases.
The city continues to spend money for frivolous things, money it should not be spending.
Our incoming City Manager is in for a rude shock. Unlike Mr. DePasquale and his two predecessors
who knew what the city was about and how they wanted to handle the Council, he is going to be run into the ground by their demands. The Council is in a woke moment. That mindset is not going to be good for the city in future years.
@concerned43 education, police&fire, and public works are the three largest line items. What category of spending would you like greatly reduced? Municipal solvency is an issue broadly in the USA but cambridge in particular is swimming in cash flow. So long as kendall square exists, Cambridge cash flow is rock solid
@taguscove
You said, Cambridge cash flow is rock solid as long as we have Kendall Square. Have you looked at the city’s balance sheet, including the footnotes? After you do, why don’t you report what you’ve found.
As far as the three largest line items. Education is a particular problem. 300 million for two grade schools, including close to 50 million in cost overruns. And no one is held responsible. It’s just “supply chain problems, and we build schools differently in Cambridge.” Hogwash.
But, the real issue with the schools is that in spite of the fact that we have by far the largest per pupil expenditure in Massachusetts, we’ve had four generations of school children who can’t read, write, or do arithmetic at grade level.
Why is that so? Is it that we have incompetent teachers? If so, why are they still teaching? If our curriculum is not what it should be, why hasn’t it been changed? Is it because we teach too much “fluff”, without teaching the basics? If so, why has it been kept that way.
As far as the DPW goes, it is a good organization with dedicated people. It is also bloated and inefficient. Too many people doing too little. It could be cut down in size and no one would notice, providing that the workers worked, rather than sitting in idling trucks and cars for hours at a time.
As far as the police and fire, these people do a fantastic job. The only thing we need there is more police, and if we could have speed cameras to stop the out of control drivers, who seem to be appearing with greater frequency.
And one other suggestion. Get CATV cameras installed. No one is going to lose any real privacy, but having cameras just might save someone’s life.