City finance director to retire after 21 years City finance director to retire after 21 years (August 04, 2004)

By Andrea Gemmet
Almanac Staff Writer

Through good times and bad, for the past 21 years Uma Chokkalingam has been an authoritative yet soft-voiced presence in Menlo Park's finance department. Ms. Chokkalingam, the city's finance director since 1992, last week announced her plans to retire in November.

She said it was a difficult decision, but that she's looking forward to traveling with her husband and spending more time with her family, particularly with her almost-1-year-old granddaughter.

"When my children were small, I was working like crazy. I'd like to spend more time now that I can, and not miss so much," she said.

City Manager David Boesch praised Ms. Chokkalingam's dedication and professionalism.

"The breadth and depth of Uma's expertise in the municipal finance arena are second to none," he said.

Ms. Chokkalingam, who worked for a construction materials company in San Mateo before joining the staff in Menlo Park in 1983 as an accountant, said she enjoyed the challenges of working for the city.

"It's a small community, but it's very demanding -- and I like challenges. I was able to learn a lot and grow with it, and contribute to the community," she said.

One of the biggest successes of her career was garnering the city the highest bond rating when the Measure T recreation bond measure passed in 2001, making Menlo Park one of only three California cities to earn the AAA rating, Ms. Chokkalingam said.

Some of the biggest challenges she's faced are the result of state take-aways of local government funding, both in the 1990s and currently, she said. Although she's certain Menlo Park will weather the difficulties, it's been hard because the economy has stayed stagnant for longer than expected.

"It takes a toll on everything," she said. "I feel it's necessary to be even more accurate, because people's lives are involved."

Councilman Paul Collacchi called Ms. Chokkalingam a steady and significant contributor to Menlo Park's financial strength, saying that while he's happy for her, she will be hard to replace.

"She was something of a master in the arcane art of government finance, which can get to be quite complex," he said. "I felt very secure with Uma at the financial helm."

Mayor Lee Duboc praised Ms. Chokkalingam's intricate knowledge of every detail of the town's finances and for always making time for anyone who wanted to meet with her.

"We all trust her so much. She's a steady person to have watching over our money," Mr. Duboc said.

"Uma represents the very best of Menlo Park city government."

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