Sunday, May 5, 2024
Members of Retired School Personnel heard from Gatesville’s new City Manager, Scott Albert, at their November meeting. First, Albert went around the room, asking members what they liked most about Gatesville. Answers included such things as “its small-town atmosphere, it’s a city with heart, neighbors helping neighbors, the townspeople work together to support needy causes, its helpful library and staff, the striking Courthouse, the beautiful museum, and the school system.” He cited efforts to improve Gatesville that he could see already in progress: enlarging the jail, repairing streets, building on to the schools to promote safety for students and teachers, setting up historical markers around the community to promote local history, and other efforts to “help beautify Gatesville.” Some areas definitely need work, such as building up the downtown area. He has stayed busy since he first came onboard in May 2023, and he said that “the city is looking at about $21 million in capital improvements that will not require the raising of taxes.” He added, “During my entire career, I have not raised taxes, and I don’t plan to raise taxes here either.”
He briefly shared some information about his more than 30 years in local government. He was enrolled in a class at the University of Texas at Dallas when a speech by Plano City Manager, Tom Muehlenbeck, inspired him to seriously consider local government as a career where you could serve and make a difference in communities and lives. He thought of himself as a “servant at heart” and changed his major from economics and finance to public administration.
He was able to serve as an intern at Plano, working in various training programs within their city budgeting department. The day he graduated with a master’s degree in public affairs, he received a job offer from the city of Springtown. After about one-and-a-half to two years there, he moved to Fairview, where he worked for five years. Next, he took a city leadership job in Celina and spent more than four years there. During this period, he developed kidney cancer which changed his life. He backed off his career and took a job with The Economist, doing utility rate and impact fee studies in Texas and Arizona.
Although Albert had never served in the military, he was intrigued when a friend called and asked if he might be interested in embedding with the Marines in Camp Fallujah (Iraq). He decided to go, thinking it would be a six-to-nine month stay. He was there longer, but one of his major projects was overseeing construction of the Fallujah wastewater treatment plant, an over $100 million project and the largest one of its kind in Iraq. Mr. Albert continued to work with the U.S. Agency for International Development from 2008 until 2011 on many challenging projects between Iraq and Afghanistan.
At the end of that five-year period, he was ready to return home, and his family wanted him home. He still was grateful for those years because, once again, he realized that he enjoyed making a difference in people’s lives.
Upon returning home, he worked in East Texas on the Riverbend Water Resources District, which was about to be shut down. With an abundance of surface water, it was vital for the Dallas-Fort Worth region. He was able to help put the district in order, and the state opted to keep the district operational. From there, Albert moved to Hondo as city manager for three years, after which time he and his wife, Noemi, moved to Gatesville and he assumed the job of city manager here. He stated that he looks forward to his work here and sees much potential and great opportunity for the Gatesville area.
