Sam Gaston has served as the City Manager of Mountain Brook for over 30 years.
Q: What's the story behind this photo?
A: This photo is from December of 2010. It was our last city council meeting in the old municipal complex at city hall before we demolished it and built our new municipal complex, which we moved into in April of 2013.
Q: Tell us about you then. What year was this? What was going on in your life then?
A: I had celebrated my 17th and a half year as city manager. We were getting ready to build a new municipal complex. We had a lot of other projects going on in the city, and so it was a very exciting time. I also assumed the position as president elect of ICMA.
Q: If you could go back in time to that day, what would you tell your younger self?
A: Be a little more patient because the municipal complex construction took longer than we expected. A lot of ups and downs, but it turned out wonderful. Also, maybe not be so uptight or OCD about things and be a little more relaxed.
Q: What might people be surprised to learn about your younger self?
A: I'm a preacher's kid. Being a preacher's kid, and a firstborn, I think has always given me a high sense of personal responsibility and duty and honor. Also, being a preacher's kid I think helped develop my leadership skills in the years and was very beneficial to me as I became the city manager later in life.
Photo courtesy of Sam Gaston
Mountain Brook's city council gathered for their final meeting in the city's old municipal complex in December 2010.
