City Clerk Ed Sarmiento leaves for home

Eduardo “Eddie” Sarmiento was appointed city clerk for Hermosa Beach in May, 2020. (Photo courtesy City of Hermosa Beach)

by Dan Blackburn

Eduardo Sarmiento, Hermosa Beach’s first appointed Hermosa Beach city clerk, is leaving after 18 months for a similar position in Huntington Park.

Sarmiento’s last day is Nov. 4.

“I wasn’t able to see my son, who is almost three, as much as I wanted,” he told ER, attributing that to the hour-plus one-way commute from his home to Hermosa Beach.

“It will take me maybe 10 minutes now to get to work,” he said.

Sarmiento was appointed in May 2020, replacing Elaine Doerfling who had held the formerly elected position for 29 years. Hermosa Beach voters elected in 2019 to make the position appointive.

He lauded his associates at City Hall.

“When I arrived in Hermosa Beach,” he said, “I was welcomed with open arms by my team members, who were very supportive and really went the extra mile to help me understand the organizational structure.”

He joined the city during the pandemic, and promptly helped modernize the department, according to City Manager Suja Lowenthal. He developed the city’s online public information request portal.

Sarmiento said he “learned quickly” that Hermosa Beach residents “value their history and their traditions.” He noted that many people in the city are interested and  involved in local government.

“Politics here is a full-contact sport,” he added wryly, “but that’s okay.”

Susan Morrow will replace Sarmiento on an interim basis while the city seeks his replacement. She is a former city clerk for several California cities and a former deputy clerk for Torrance. ER

Comments:

comments so far. Comments posted to EasyReaderNews.com may be reprinted in the Easy Reader print edition, which is published each Thursday.