Leng Shakes Up Senior Administrative Staff In Hamden

HAMDEN, CT — About two weeks after naming former Mayor Scott D. Jackson as the town’s new finance director in a staff shakeup, Hamden Mayor Curt Balzano Leng announced more changes to his administration on Wednesday night.

Curtis Eatman, who had been serving as the town’s finance director, was appointed the town's Acting Economic Development Director when Jackson was brought back into the fold.

Leng announced several other key senior-level staffing changes that are “designed to strengthen Hamden’s governmental operations, the delivery of programs and services, and to best address the needs of our residents, taxpayers and families, while continuing Hamden’s path toward financial security,” according to a news release.

Former Board of Education member Adam Sendroff, currently serving as the town’s Community Development Manager, will transition to the role of Acting Chief of Staff on Feb. 17, according to Leng. Julie Smith will become Acting Community Development Manager at the Keefe Community Center and David Garretson will move from Chief of Staff to Acting Director of Arts & Special Projects.

Sendroff grew up in Hamden, holds a Bachelor’s in History from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, where he is also currently a Master of Public Health student. He worked for more than 20 years in the private sector, for a college-level academic publishing company, prior to becoming Hamden’s Community Development Manager in 2017.

“Sendroff holds a wide range of experience, including effective management, communications, budget development, civic engagement, marketing and project coordination,” a news release states.

Sendroff served as a member of the Hamden Board of Education from 2007 to 2017, including serving in leadership roles for seven year. While serving on the board, officials wrote that Sendroff was “instrumental in facilitating impactful projects and programs, including efforts to expand preschool opportunities, to add a School-Based Health Clinic, and partnership with the non-profit CfAL (Concepts for Adaptive Learning) to help address the digital divide.”

He currently serves as a member of the Hamden School Based Health Clinics Advisory Board, as Chair of the New Haven County Emergency Food and Shelter Program and has served in multiple community roles, including the Hamden PTA Council and the Connecticut Advisory Council for Teacher Professional Standards.

As Community Development Manager, Sendroff oversaw operations of the Keefe Community Center, which provides an array of essential services that benefit Hamden residents, including Community Services, Youth Services, Community Development, and more, as well as developing relationships with community partner agencies.

Partnerships have resulted in “expanded and enhanced services, including food security efforts, expanded services to support those experiencing homelessness and focusing a public health frame around many Keefe services and activities,” the news release states.

Sendroff is also credited with organizing the community pop-up COVID-19 testing in Hamden during the pandemic. He also managed Hamden’s annual Community Development Block Grant.

“Adam has spent a significant portion of his professional and personal life serving and caring for our community,” Leng said in a statement. “His experience and demonstrated leadership at both the Board of Education and especially at the Keefe Community Center, give him a unique perspective and understanding to serve our Town well in this pivotal role, at a time when providing essential social and health services during a global pandemic couldn’t be more important. I am taking actions that will put Hamden in the best position possible to be successful and always prepared to address the complex needs our community faces in unprecedented times.”

Smith, who Leng described as “one of Hamden’s most experienced and versatile directors,” will replace Sendroff as Acting Community Development Manager. She has served the town since 2008, starting as the Town’s Deputy Chief Administrative Officer and Grants Coordinator, serving as Chief of Staff to Leng from 2015-2017 and most recently as the Director of Arts, Culture and Special Projects from 2017 to present. Prior to serving the Town of Hamden, Smith worked extensively on productions for the New York Shakespeare Festival and Joseph Papp Public Theater.

“Julie has brought a wide range of talents to each position she has served in and I know her ability to effectively manage a diverse range of programs and projects will be of great benefit to the Keefe Community Center, and the essential programs and services the Center provides,” Leng said. “I know that our Keefe Community Center will build upon recent successful program expansion to address even more needs and provide for all of our residents.”

Garretson will transition to the role of Acting Director of Arts & Special Projects. During his tenure as Chief of Staff, Garretson brought a “myriad of significant improvements to Hamden’s local government and internal operations,” according to Leng.

Garretson oversaw the launch of the SeeClickFix constituent engagement platform, worked to secure funding for numerous large-scale grant programs and projects, assisted Leng in “guiding Hamden through serious natural disasters and recovery efforts and was centrally involved in the planning and launch of Hamden’s Covid-19 response and virtual-workforce mobilization,” according to the news release.

Leng said Garretson’s “critical thinking skills, talents as a communicator, knowledge of budgetary principals and understanding of all aspects of town government operations make him well suited to tackle key work in the Special Projects role.”

Garretson’s initial focus will be on ensuring multiple Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA) grant projects, “totaling in the millions of dollars, are completed successfully, and bringing some important capital improvement and infrastructure projects across the finish line,” the news release states. “In addition, he will work to expand Hamden’s funding opportunities by seeking out and coordinating additional grant opportunities for our Town to support programs and projects.”

“Mr. Garretson’s service as Chief of Staff has been deeply appreciated,” Leng said. “Thanks to his service, Hamden has become more customer-service focused, and transparent, always ensuring that the core mission of serving all our residents was front and center. David is a compassionate professional, a keenly insightful advisor and someone who is always striving to improve the delivery of services to our residents. In his new role, he will undoubtedly bolster the Administration by helping to deliver much-needed funding at such an essential time.”