Outgoing Town Manager Departs with Praise

June 25, 2025
• Town Manager Kate Fitzpatrick will be honored with a Needham town holiday and a trust fund in her name.

June 26 will now be known as Kate Fitzpatrick Day in Needham.

In her final Select Board meeting as town manager on Tuesday, Fitzpatrick received praise and recognition for her 35 years of service to the town, culminating in the passage of a town holiday bearing her name.

Fitzpatrick, who has served as the town’s first town manager, oversaw “a generation of capital facility projects” and left her mark on a number of key policies, including the Community Preservation Act and Town Manager Act, the proclamation states.

“Kate advanced the local government management profession, mentoring emerging leaders, advocating for ethical excellence, and elevating women in municipal administration across the Commonwealth and the United States,” part of the proclamation reads.

Select Board Chair Heidi Frail called Fitzpatrick “a legend in local government circles” and someone who has “seen it all and weathered every storm.”

Under her leadership, “everyone in town sleeps easy at night,” board member Kevin Keane said.

“Kate’s extremely level-headed, she’s gracious. She’s forgotten more than I will ever learn about municipal government,” Keane said. “And the other thing is, she’s incredibly curious. You are always looking at new things in new ways all the time.”

Following a number of speakers, including state officials, past and current colleagues and the board, Fitzpatrick earned a standing ovation from attendees.

The town also established the Kathleen (Kate) P. Fitzpatrick Professional Development Fund, which will cover experiences such as conferences and seminars for town employees. The fund will contain a permanent $3,000 balance.

“This is in keeping with something that’s very near and dear to Kate’s heart: professional development,” Director of Finance Dave Davison said of the trust fund. The fund was kept a secret from Fitzpatrick, appearing on the meeting’s agenda in vague terms.

Former Select Board member Matt Borrelli and others raised thousands of dollars to kickstart the fund, which will provide the “means to foster continual growth, professional management, talent and service of Needham,” he said.

During his remarks, Borrelli reflected fondly on his professional and personal connection with Fitzpatrick, jokingly referred to the many acronyms in Needham’s town government and recalled their 2016 trip to China.

“I remember when I was first elected, you called me the day of the meeting, not to discuss the agenda, but to make sure that I knew to wear a tie,” Borrelli said, “both to avoid my embarrassment and respect the culture of the board at the time.”

Her successful future planning sets future generations up for success, he added.

“Kate, your long-term vision, planning and focus on the future has made Needham the best town in this country,” he said. “Your career is of amazing success. Even though the history that we shared was only a fraction of your career, that fraction made the whole town exponentially better.”

Moderator Michael Fee said he’ll “miss being one of two people in the room who actually remember stuff that happened” in Needham’s history. Over many Town Meetings, he said he’s “grown to harbor the greatest respect for Kate as a public servant.”

“Kate works for the citizens,” he said.

Fitzpatrick joined the Town of Needham as its personnel director in March of 1990 and rose to assistant town administrator, town administrator and finally town manager in 2005.

Those early years marked “dark times,” Select Board member Josh Levy said — a difficult Town Meeting, budget difficulties, layoffs — but Fitzpatrick “really turned things around.”

“The town has seen so much change, and you have directed so much change in this town, and we are so grateful for that,” he said, “and we are very scared of what’s going to happen after, but we know we’re in good hands.”

“My family will tell you I hate change,” Fitzpatrick responded, “so that’s high praise indeed.”

State Sen. Becca Rausch presented Fitzpatrick with a citation in recognition of her 35 years of service, and state Rep. Josh Tarsky offered his congratulations.

“Kate, this town is stronger for your service,” Rausch, of Needham, said. “We are stronger, better because of your service.”

Fitzpatrick carries more than three decades of institutional knowledge, often producing copies of old town policies and documents with lightning speed, member Marianne Cooley said. But she won’t be taking her work with her.

“The most important thing to know about Kate is that she has set all of us up for success going forward,” Cooley said, “and despite the fact that we are really sad that she’s leaving, we are prepared and we’re ready to go.”