[Commending Thomas Owen]
Resolution commending and congratulating Thomas Owen upon his retirement as Deputy City Attorney with the Office of the San Francisco City Attorney.
WHEREAS, Over the course of more than three decades, as Deputy City Attorney for the Office of the San Francisco City Attorney, Thomas Owen has been an outstanding public servant and has worked tirelessly for the San Francisco Department of the Environment and the entire City and County of San Francisco family; and,
WHEREAS, Thomas Owen joined the Office of the City Attorney in 1981 having previously earned a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Rochester, a Juris Doctorate from Stanford University School of Law and having later earned a Master’s from the University of San Francisco; and,
WHEREAS, Thomas Owen was assigned many major City agency clients including the San Francisco Department of the Environment, Board of Appeals, Department of Emergency Management, Civil Grand Jury, the Legislative Analyst’s Unit, Controller’s Office and assisted the Board of Supervisors, Mayor, City Administrator and Controller with the drafting of legislation; and,
WHEREAS, Thomas Owen has become the authority of the City’s 1996 Charter having performed all of the legislative drafting on the project which included the rewriting of much of the 1932 Charter – a herculean task that demonstrated Thomas Owen’s extraordinary ability to deal with complicated matters; and,
WHEREAS, Thomas Owen earned the esteem of his colleagues at the Department of the Environment and the respect of his peers at the Office of the City Attorney for being a consummate professional with writing skills that are unequaled and an ability to comprehend and break down extremely complex concepts for the betterment of the City and County of San Francisco; and,
WHEREAS, Thomas Owen has made significant contributions to policy development at the San Francisco Department of the Environment and it is recognized that his assistance has been pivotal to many of the Department’s major policy initiatives; and,
WHEREAS, Thomas Owen, as a quintessential municipal lawyer, has set a high standard with stellar work and opinions that will benefit his colleagues at the Office of the City Attorney and the residents of the City and County of San Francisco for generations to come; and
WHEREAS, The Commission on the Environment and the Department of the Environment hereby signify their appreciation for all of the work that Thomas Owen performed and wishes him the best of luck in his retirement; now therefore, be it,
RESOLVED, That the San Francisco Commission on the Environment and the Department of the Environment recognize Thomas Owen’s contributions to the Department of the Environment, and wish him the very best in his future endeavors.
I hereby certify that this Resolution was adopted by the Commission on the Environment at its meeting on November 14, 2016.
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Anthony E. Valdez, Commission Affairs Manager
Vote: 6-0 Approved
Ayes: Commissioners Omotalade, Bermejo, Hoyos, Stephenson, Wald and Wan.
Noes: None
Absent: None