Hollister
– San Benito County Council of Governments officials have
announced that local resident Bob Davies will be serving as interim
COG director for the next several months while the board seeks a
permanent replacement.
Hollister – San Benito County Council of Governments officials have announced that local resident Bob Davies will be serving as interim COG director for the next several months while the board seeks a permanent replacement.
“I think he’s more than qualified for this position,” said County Supervisor Anthony Botelho, who sits on the COG board.
Davies retired last year after serving as Commander of the Gilroy/Hollister CHP for 11 years, which makes him uniquely qualified for the job of steering COG for the time being, Botelho said.
“He’s very familiar with the roads and transportation issues in the area,” he said. “And that’s the sort of experience we need to make sure COG stays on track.”
Davies was also a familiar face on COG’s Technical Advisory Committee, so he is well versed with many of the issues the agency is dealing with.
“I spent nine of my 11 years with the CHP on the committee,” he said. “So I’m involved with the history of a lot of this.”
COG directors expect to have a permanent director in place within two or three months, which Botelho said is about how long Davies expressed an interest in working with COG. During his tenure with the agency, Davies will make just less than $7,000.
“We have a lot of very capable people in the COG office,” said Botelho. “But I think some leadership from the outside will be very beneficial for everybody.”
Davies’ day-to-day administrative responsibilities will include keeping the COG directors informed of developments surrounding ongoing transportation issues – like the Highway 25 bypass project – and overseeing office staff.
“I’m hoping we can really focus on making things work at the local level, and not have someone worrying about attending all these meetings out of town,” Botelho said. “We have enough of our own troubles at home.”
Davies will be taking the reins from Tom Quigley, who resigned earlier in the month after heading COG for three years. No official reason was given for Quigley’s departure and he refused to comment, but his tenure at the multi-jurisdictional agency’s helm was mired in controversy.
The $43 million highway bypass will be a big issue for both Davies and his successor in the near future. It will create a new leg of Highway 25 that circumvents downtown Hollister and connects to Airline Highway. Once the bypass is complete, Caltrans will cede control of San Benito Street, which is currently the same road as Highway 25, to Hollister. The city’s general plan calls for making San Benito Street more pedestrian-friendly once the street is under Hollister’s control. Construction on the bypass is slated to begin in August 2007 and take less than two years.
Davies said he hopes he will be able to ensure a smooth transition for COG when a permanent director takes over before riding off into the sunset.
“I retired once,” he said. “And I got to travel with my wife, and work on some projects around the house, and spend time with my kids. You know what? That’s a pretty good life.”
Danielle Smith covers education for the Free Lance. Reach her at 637-5566, ext. 336 or ds****@fr***********.com
