Veteran city administrator Joe Hoefgen was named Redondo Beach city manager by a unanimous vote of the city council Tuesday night. Hoefgen has served as interim city manager since last April when City Manager Bill Workman was dismissed, following complaints about his management from city employees.
Hoefgen spent 15 years in the city of Del Mar, 11 of those as assistant city manager. In 2007, Palos Verdes Estates offered him their city manager’s position.
Hoefgen spent nearly four years there. He was dismissed in 2011, following the election of two new councilmembers.
Shortly afterwards, he was hired by Redondo as its Director of Community Services.
“He’s got a real low-key, mellow, quiet style,” Councilmember Pat Aust said following the meeting. “He came in at a bad time and made our employees feel that someone asked questions and really cares about their answers.”
“He’s not going to have the tendencies of a Bill Workman,” Aust said. “Out of all the people I worked with, Workman was the best manager — but you know what a manager is? A manager manages goods and services. A leader leads people. Workman was great at finances, but not good at managing the people who did the jobs. Both of them have their place, but one of them we needed to mend things that had been broken.”
“The other side of it is that some people take your mannerisms and the way you speak as your personality. He can be tough when he needs to be, but he’s not going to cause problems just to cause them. That’s what we need, someone who makes situations better, not amplify them.”
After taking his oath, Hoefgen thanked the council. “This is the seventh city I’ve worked for, I’ve had a wonderful experience here. There’s a lot of exciting things going on in Redondo Beach, and I’m glad to play a part,” he said. ER
