Saying she ‘cannot work under these conditions,’ Peterson resigns as Tracy city administrator
By Seth Schmidt
Tracy city government is looking for a new administrator, following the abrupt resignation of Madonna Peterson last week.
At a special Tuesday, Sept. 19, meeting that was originally planned as a “work session” to fine-tune the 2018 budget, the council accepted Peterson’s resignation made plans to find her successor.
Mayor Steve Ferrazzano and other council members received word of Peterson’s resignation in a Thursday email from Public Works Director Shane Daniels. Daniels notified the mayor that Peterson had informed him that she would be on vacation until Oct. 2, when her employment would end.
A hand-written note from Peterson was included in the message to the council. “My last day will be Oct. 2, 2017. I cannot work under these conditions.”
Peterson also dropped off a hand-written Post-it note at the Headlight-Herald office, with an identical message.
Attempts to reach Peterson for further comment were unsuccessful.
Ferrazzano was asked Monday if he was aware of anything that had triggered the administrator’s resignation.
“I can speculate as to the reasons, but ultimately I’m not 100% certain. I’m not aware of anything specifically.”
The mayor said he was sorry to see Peterson leave.
“She was doing a good job, and I’m sorry that she decided to resign. She was very knowledgeable about city business.”
The mayor said it was his impression from Peterson’s message that she will not be returning to work for a last day, after her vacation days are used up.
For more on this article, see this week’s Headlight-Herald.