Today, the San Ramon City Council announced the selection of Steven Spedowfski as San Ramon’s next City Manager. Spedowfski, who has worked for the City for more than 20 years and has been serving as San Ramon’s Interim City Manager, was selected following a thorough and transparent vetting process, which included a nationwide search, a community survey, and a staff survey.
Spedowfski has worked for the City of San Ramon since 2001, first as a Transportation Specialist; then as an Analyst, then Senior Analyst in the Public Works Department, overseeing the City’s special district finances, stormwater program, geographic information system, and department communications.
In 2019, Spedowfski was promoted to Deputy City Manager, serving as the Economic Development Director, Public Information Officer, and Legislative Liaison.
Spedowfski succeeds former City Manager Joe Gorton (who retired in January 2023), and has been serving as San Ramon’s Interim City Manager during the hiring period.
“The recruiting consultant did an outstanding job and gave us a lot of good candidates; we learned a lot from our interviews. But in the end, we realized what we had is what we wanted; this was the decision we all came to,” said Mayor David E. Hudson, who introduced Spedowfski as a new employee in 2001. “Steven has been dedicated to the San Ramon community for more than 20 years, and brings a wealth of knowledge to the role. We are confident in his leadership as our next City Manager.”
“It is a great honor to be selected as San Ramon’s next City Manager,” said Spedowfski. “This is a wonderful community, and I am looking forward to continuing to serve the residents of San Ramon in this new capacity."
Spedowfski joined the City of San Ramon in 2001 as a Transportation Specialist, where he restructured the City’s Residential Traffic Calming program and Safe Routes to School program. He also served as liaison to County Connection and the Contra Costa Transportation Authority.
From 2004–2009, he worked as an Analyst in San Ramon’s Engineering Department, managing the finances for the Citywide Landscape and Lighting District and the Geologic Hazard Abatement District (GHAD). In the role, he developed the 40-year GHAD reserve fund study that recently funded a $5 million landslide repair. He also conducted audits on county assessments, generating an additional $1.5 million in revenue for the City.
In 2009, he was promoted to Senior Analyst, overseeing the City’s stormwater program, Geographic Information System (GIS), and special district finances. During his time as Senior Analyst, he led the communications effort and provided support for San Ramon’s District Election formation process, led negotiations for two regional stormwater permits issued by the San Francisco Regional Water Quality Control Board. He also served as the City representative for the Contra Costa Local Hazard Mitigation Plan (including as chair from 2010–2018) and the Contra Costa Clean Water Program (Chair 2008 and 2011).
In 2019, Spedowfski began serving as San Ramon’s Deputy City Manager, creating a business assistance program for COVID relief, helping local businesses receive in $4.8 million in state and federal grants. He lead the renewal effort for the San Ramon Valley Tourism Business Improvement District, successfully obtained a $2 million federal earmark for the Iron Horse Trail Overcrossing at Crow Canyon Road, developed the City’s communication strategy for COVID-19 information, and the redistricting process for district elections. He has also served as the liaison to Discover San Ramon and the San Ramon Chamber of Commerce.
He currently serves on the Board of San Ramon Regional Medical Center.
Spedowfski also held an elected position as a Council Member for the City of Livermore from 2014–2018 (Vice Mayor 2017), where he played a key role in the adoption of the Livermore Downtown Plan, was a founding board member of the Valley Link Regional Rail system, and a founding board member of the East Bay Community Choice Energy program. He also served as a Livermore Planning Commissioner from 2011 – 2014 (Chair 2013).
Spedowfski holds a Master’s degree in Public Administration from California State University, Hayward, and a Bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice Administration. He has also earned a Master Certificate in Leadership from the ICMA High Performance Leadership Academy.