Berkeley’s public works chief is leaving for a new job in East Contra Costa County.
Public Works Director Terrance Davis is poised to become assistant city manager in Brentwood, Berkeley City Manager Paul Buddenhagen wrote in a memo Friday. Davis has been Berkeley’s top infrastructure official for just shy of two years.
Wahid Amiri, a deputy public works director who leads the transportation and engineering divisions, will be the department’s interim director as the city recruits to fill the role permanently, Buddenhagen wrote.
A former assistant city manager in Vallejo, Davis came to Berkeley at a fraught moment for its public works office in the spring of 2024. The department’s previous director, Liam Garland, resigned in late 2023 under unclear circumstances, capping months of tumult, departures and a city investigation that appeared to be driven by a proposal to build a bike lane along Hopkins Street, which sparked a fierce debate before officials shelved it.
Buddenhagen praised Davis’ “calm and steady hand” and work to fill the department’s vacancies, as well as his efforts to implement a parcel tax to fund street repairs and safety projects that voters approved in 2024, among other initiatives.
Many bike and pedestrian advocates hope that tax will usher in a wave of new safety projects in the coming years. Meanwhile city officials have taken early steps toward putting a bond measure on this November’s ballot to fund other infrastructure projects.
Davis’ last day will be March 20.
Featured image credit: Kelly Sullivan for Berkeleyside
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Nico Savidge is Berkeleyside’s news editor, and has covered city hall since 2021. He has reported on transportation, law enforcement, politics, education and college sports for the San Jose Mercury News,…
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