Former SLT City Attorney headed to new job in Santa Maria

Submitted by paula on Thu, 05/30/2019 - 5:13pm

Former South Lake Tahoe City Attorney Tom Watson has resigned from his position with the City of Tracy, California and taken a new one as the City Attorney of Santa Maria, a community south of San Luis Obispo.

Watson will start with them on June 17 after his contract was unanimously approved by the Santa Maria City Council on May 7.

"I have confidence in his abilities to manage and lead the City Attorney’s Office for years to come,” said Mayor Alice Patino in a news release. “I look forward to him effectively managing the legal needs of our city.”

Watson will be replacing Gil Trujillo who retired in December after being the city's top legal expert for 14 years. Watson left South Lake Tahoe in September of 2017 after serving for four years. He started in Tracy in November of that year. His last day in Tracy will be May 31.

Watson's employment contract calls for him to receive an annual salary of $201,875. According to 2017 figures, Tracy has a population of 90,889 and Santa Maria has 107,014.

A graduate of Santa Clara University, Watson has served in numerous governmental
capacities since 1989. A specialist in construction litigation, he joined the Fresno law firm of Kimble, MacMichael & Upton upon completion of an internship with the Ninth Circuit US Court of Appeals. After three years with KMU, Watson joined the Tulare County Counsel’ office, obtaining expertise in governmental construction and entitlements, which resulted in his serving as LAFCO counsel for the County.

In 2002, he left Tulare County to establish the law firm, Fike, Boranian & Watson. In 2005, Mr. Watson was appointed as a Judge Pro Tem for the Office of Administrative Services, a judicial arm of the State of California. From 2008 until coming to South Lake Tahoe, Watson served as the City Attorney for Mendota and was Woodlake’s City Attorney for over 16 years.