After more than two decades of service, Woodbury City Administrator Clint Gridley is poised to bid farewell to his post, eyeing a retirement date of June 6, 2025, which he revealed in a late 2024 announcement. Gridley, who has witnessed the transformation of Woodbury since taking the helm on June 7, 2004, expressed his sense of achievement, saying, "I’m proud of everything we’ve accomplished together – with our talented and dedicated staff and consistently effective City Councils," according to a Woodbury government statement.
During his tenure, Gridley oversaw a series of pivotal developments, such as the construction of a water treatment facility, still in progress, as well as the refurbishment and expansion of the M Health Fairview Sports Center - projects that join a historical roster of achievements under his guidance, yet Mayor Anne Burt cast Gridley’s legacy in a wider light stressing the transformative impact on Woodbury which, during Gridley's tenure, burgeoned from a community of just over 50,000 to a robust city of 80,000 residents, according to the city's report.
Gridley's influence is also measurable in concrete terms, with the square footage of commercial property in Woodbury skyrocketing from 7.2 million square feet when he started to current-day 13.7 million square feet, signifying the town's economic surge. Boasting over 40 years in public service, Gridley arrived in Woodbury from Cedarburg, Wis., and has been an active participant in several city and municipal groups, as detailed in his professional chronicle shared by the city.
Preparations for sourcing Gridley’s successor are currently in motion, with the city council engaging local government consultant Dave Unmacht to shape a position profile and a recruitment firm on deck to execute a national search; Gridley himself commented on the advance notice of his retirement as a strategy to grant the council “ample time to carry out an effective recruitment process for selecting the next city administrator,” a sentiment captured in Woodbury's release.
For members of the Woodbury community with inquiries about the recruitment, Deputy City Administrator Angela Gorall stands ready to address questions at 651-714-3573 or through an email to [email protected], as the city gears up to turn the page to a new chapter in its administrative leadership.
