‘Problem-Solver,’ Forward-Thinker: Needham Charts Fitzpatrick’s Impact

June 25, 2025
• On the eve of her retirement, Kate Fitzpatrick’s current and former colleagues share reflections on her storied career and effectiveness as a town leader.

“Who are you if you’re not the town manager?”

It’s a question Kate Fitzpatrick asked herself back in October, when she announced she’d be leaving the top job in the summer. July 5 will mark the conclusion of her 20-year tenure as Needham’s first town manager and longer career within the town’s government.

“There aren’t as many people who stay in a job as long as I have,” Fitzpatrick said in an interview. “I love this job, so that’s why I’ve stayed, but that makes it sometimes harder to leave.”

Needham must also reckon with the loss of its longtime leader, someone who her colleagues say successfully developed staff, knew the ins and outs of town policies and cultivated an open, supportive workplace, all while effectively managing a town of 33,000 people.

In some way, Needham won’t know what it’s missing until Fitzpatrick is gone, Select Board member Marianne Cooley said.

“She’s really, in some ways, the prophet in her own land,” Cooley said, “because we all take it for granted that the town is going to run the way it runs thanks to Kate and the team that she’s built here.”

In other communities, town boards and committees “are always battling,” but that’s not the case in Needham, said former Department of Public Works Director Rick Merson, who served in that role for nearly 50 years.

“That’s the magic, I think, that Kate brought to the table very quietly behind the scenes,” he said. “[She] makes things happen.”

Building a Team

Myles Tucker, Needham’s support services manager, first heard about Fitzpatrick out in California while working in county government — her accolades and commitment to Needham reached the west coast.

Tucker now works in the town manager’s office, which comes with a fair share of learning opportunities, thanks to Fitzpatrick.

“That’s probably the best part of my job, from a professional standpoint, is Kate welcomes me into the room for something that I may not have a lot of experience on, but I get to watch one of the best in the profession do it,” said Tucker, who has worked in Needham for almost four years. “It highlights her dedication to staff and building the next generation.”

When his job opened up, it was Fitzpatrick’s reputation “as someone who excels in the trade” that pushed him to apply. Fitzpatrick’s acclaim in the industry helped retain other staffers, creating what’s considered “the Needham tree,” like the Bill Belichick coaching tree, Tucker said.

Fitzpatrick’s rise to town manager coincided with Carys Lustig’s first job in Needham town government — in 2005, searching for an internship, Lustig emailed the Board of Selectmen, and Fitzpatrick set her up with the DPW. Lustig, a Needham native, now directs the department.

In those early years, Lustig learned just how well Needham is managed. During a program with the International City Managers Association, Lustig introduced herself as a Needham resident, to which people responded, “Oh my god, you work for Kate.”

“It’s like being with a rock star,” Lustig said. “That was sort of like, ‘Oh, this isn’t just working for a town that I grew up in, this is working for a town that is really well considered as far as how it’s run.’ And I think Kate is a huge part of that.”

During school breaks, Lustig also worked with Fitzpatrick and her office on special projects, sustainability planning, HR and more. She described Fitzpatrick as her “number-one cheerleader” and a mentor.

Next week, Fitzpatrick will pass the torch to Deputy Town Manager Katie King, who joined the town mid-pandemic five years ago. Having worked in local government, King said she was drawn to Needham, in large part, due to Fitzpatrick’s leadership.

In the months leading up to her retirement, Fitzpatrick has helped King transition into the role, taking proactive steps to ensure she can succeed, King said. But even prior to King’s appointment, Fitzpatrick offered guidance and hands-on experience.

“She’s constantly training up all of her staff, giving people opportunities to take on projects where they can learn new skills or demonstrate their talent to others,” King said.

Former Needham Town Administrator Carl Valente, who preceded Fitzpatrick, said her strengths lie in creating a team of younger staffers and an environment in which they can thrive. Dan Gutekanst, superintendent of Needham Public Schools, complimented Fitzpatrick’s work on school contracts, calling her “the strongest partner” of the district.

“We’ve benefited from her leadership and her guidance and her wisdom over all these many years,” he said at the School Committee’s June 16 meeting, “and this participation in the contract [negotiation] is no exception. She provides advice and guidance throughout the process.”

Her work on town infrastructure, from municipal buildings to schools, will be her lasting legacy, Merson said. From his perspective, she was “the perfect town manager to work for and with.”

“She was very professional, she selected highly skilled assistant town managers, [and] that has been the rock of the community system,” Merson said. “Everything has been for the community, and she works for the people. It’s the people that make the community happen.”

A Career in Public Service

After graduating from the College of the Holy Cross, Fitzpatrick worked a short stint at the Kennedy School before entering human resources with the state and later the Department of Youth Services. Her introduction to Needham was through the classifieds in the newspaper.

“I didn’t even know where Needham was,” she recalled with a laugh. Her first time in town, she stopped at the library to ask where Town Hall was.

Her passion in local government was ignited at 11 years old, when she wrote a letter to her hometown to petition they replace a street sign that was misspelled. They did.

“And I still get asked for street signs, so it’s never-ending. But I think it’s just the purest form of democracy, local government,” Fitzpatrick said, “because we’re here and people have all sorts of needs and they call us and we often help them.”

Her state government work felt more policy-oriented and carried less of that “great feeling” and gratification that comes with local government, she said.

In early 1990, Fitzpatrick started as the town’s personnel director, a role in which she served for eight years before rising to assistant town administrator. For almost four years, Fitzpatrick was Needham’s town administrator, before they switched over to a town manager in 2005.

Closing a 35-year chapter of her life was a difficult decision but one she made a couple years ago, she said. When asked what she’s been reflecting on the past few months, she didn’t have an answer.

“I’m going to be honest, I’m a compartmentalizer, so I haven’t been reflecting at all. I’m not a big person on self-reflection, but I figure I’ll do that later,” she said. “I’ll probably wind down on the 3rd.”

What she feels will define her tenure is three-fold: building a team, building community and literal buildings. She and her staff worked to place the right people in roles, to engage the public via hybrid meetings and to bolster town infrastructure, namely with the construction of the Public Services Administration Building, Center at the Heights and the Memorial Park Fieldhouse. The Town Hall, a building she once couldn’t find, was also renovated under her leadership.

“There’s more to come, but I think that the town is really thoughtful in how it plans for building,” Fitzpatrick said, “and I’m sure it’ll work out.”

Fitzpatrick considers 2020 a particularly standout year, as it called on local leaders to be creative. Outdoor Town Meeting — three times — was “one of the most amazing things.”

Outside of her Needham work, Fitzpatrick co-founded Massachusetts Women Leading Government and is a 27-year member of the International City Managers Association, or ICMA, where she’s served on its leadership advisory board and credentialing advisory board. Fitzpatrick also served as president of the Massachusetts Municipal Management Association from 2009-2010.

“People in Massachusetts know what an icon Kate Fitzpatrick is in local government – but they may not know the extent of her reach nationally,” the ICMA said in a statement. “ICMA is fortunate that she has finally failed at something – retirement! As you celebrate her service in Needham and Massachusetts, we look forward to her supporting our members in the Northeast when she joins ICMA later this year.”

‘Very Kate’

At the annual ICMA conferences, Fitzpatrick sought out historical landmarks in the different host cities, “dragging a handful of us along with her,” Valente said. A memorable visit was Gettysburg, but over the years, they’ve seen presidential libraries, battlefields and more, Valente said.

“She’s a real history buff,” he said. Perhaps surprisingly, Fitzpatrick also loves a good IPA, he added.

Tucker knows Fitzpatrick to be “a prolific reader,” recording 80-100 books last year alone, he said. She reads everything from beach reads to the latest book on leadership, King said, and passes recommendations onto staff. Fitzpatrick also makes frequent stops at the library, she added.

Fitzpatrick recently earned her certified financial planner certificate after attending night classes, which Cooley said was, in part, a retirement-related goal of hers.

Her blog, Very Kate, details her ruminations on local government and adventures within the career. In a recent post, she explored the pros and cons of a long career in the same place, outlining the connections you make, knowledge of past policies and historic decisions, coupled by the loss of employees, the difficulty in making decisions and remembering mistakes “and the many bad hair experiments.”

For years, Fitzpatrick baked holiday cookies for the Select Board each year, which is “one of her other love languages,” Cooley said. Cooley returned the favor before their meeting Tuesday, baking “Christmas in June” cookies for her friend and colleague.

Around the 4th of July, Fitzpatrick typically spends time with family in Maine, but this year, she is breaking tradition to serve as the grand marshal in Needham’s parade, just before she departs. She’ll be accompanied by her grandson.

As a serious list-maker, Fitzpatrick has an affinity for planners, King said. And her family means a lot to her.

“She’s an incredibly proud mom of two amazing women and now a grandson,” King said, “and so that, of course, is a big part of her life.”

Her Legacy

Town government operates years, sometimes decades, in advance, Fitzpatrick said, because things take time. A guiding principle she’s adopted over her career is that “you have to have the belief that you can make it happen.”

Cooley praised Fitzpatrick for her forward-thinking approach and how she takes the long view. For years to come, her fingerprints will cover town regulations, policies, practices and infrastructure. “She’s left her mark here,” Cooley said.

“We’ve been so fortunate to have her with that deep knowledge, with the collaborative style that she has, with the way that she listens hard to what’s going on,” Cooley said, “and her ability to anticipate where some of the obstacles are going to be based on the experience she brings is huge.”

Leaving public service proves a challenge, and Valente knows that feeling well. After his 13-year stint in Needham, he led Lexington, and after semi-retirement, he’ll officially retire from his finance work in Dover this week. He and Fitzpatrick recently spoke about the difficulty in stepping away, “when so much of your identity is wrapped up in the community you work in,” he said.

“There’s not a lot of professions that can say that you make a difference in people’s lives,” he said.

For Lustig, Fitzpatrick provided wisdom, expertise and opportunity, allowing herself to dream big and picture herself in a leadership role.

“Being a woman in a traditionally non-female dominated profession, which is what Kate is as well, I think having somebody who is so well-considered professionally, but also seemed to have a lovely relationship with her children,” Lustig said, “finding someone who had that balance and a life… I think it was inspiring coming into this field.”

Fitzpatrick’s daughter Molly followed in her footsteps — she works as Westwood’s assistant town administrator.

Molly and her young son Teddy attended Tuesday’s Select Board meeting, Fitzpatrick’s last, where board members established Kate Fitzpatrick Day on June 26. The new town holiday commemorates her “career of selfless service on behalf of Needham and its residents.”

“Your influence on women in government, and men too, has really brought a level of talent and confidence to Needham that few other towns experience,” Chair Heidi Frail said Tuesday, “and that, in turn, has led to a period of longevity and stability for this town, so we are just very lucky to have that.”

Fitzpatrick was also recognized by state Sen. Becca Rausch and state Rep. Josh Tarsky. Former state Rep. Denise Garlick, who also served on Needham’s Select Board during Fitzpatrick’s tenure, attended the meeting as well.

Your boss shapes your day-to-day, King said, and her career in Needham has been shaped greatly by Fitzpatrick.

“She’s relentlessly optimistic. She always has the long view of what the community needs, how to solve problems,” she said. “She has a complete expert grasp on all of the technical aspects of the job, but I think as important as that is, [it’s] how she goes about the work. She is a problem-solver. She’s a relationship-builder.”

The ripple effects, across 35 years of service, are profound, Tucker said.

“The amount of people who have possibly benefited from Kate’s professionalism and dedication to local government management spreads way beyond them,” he said, “and it’s going to have an impact for decades and decades to come.

As she enters retirement, Fitzpatrick plans to coach and mentor young female leaders in government in the New England region. Always working and always dedicated, Cooley affectionately said Fitzpatrick “doesn’t know how to stop.”

She remains optimistic about Needham’s future, pointing to residents’ high happiness ratings. Local issues can brew division, and national tensions are palpable, but Fitzpatrick sees the Select Board, Planning Board, Finance Committee, schools and other boards transcending that.

“The volunteers who are on the boards, they work so hard, and there’s so many people working on committees that people have never even heard of,” she said. “They work so hard, just to help their town, and I think that’s inspiring.”