Maryann Pappas finally got her wish.
‘I’ve been waiting 15 years for this,? she said, as husband and longtime Clarkston City Manager Art Pappas stood on the brink of retirement last week.
But knowing him as she does, Maryann wasn’t surprised the man she married waited until he was 74 to retire.
‘He likes to work,? she said. ‘He’s worked everyday since he was 16 years old.?
John Pappas, one of the couple’s four children, said while family has always been his dad’s top priority, the City of Clarkston comes in ‘a very close second place.?
Art Pappas began his long tenure with Clarkston when he was appointed village clerk, at the time a part-time elected position, in 1962.
In 1972, he switched for the treasurer’s hat, also a part-time elected position, and held the title until 1988 when he retired from his teaching career.
Pappas taught business at Clarkston High School from 1959-1966. His career also included time in Oxford and Walled Lake classrooms, at North Oakland Vocational Center and Oakland Community College.
He retired in June 1988, and by October he was working full-time as Clarkston’s manager and treasurer.
‘He’s always been a hard-working kind of guy,? said John Pappas, noting his dad can work in just about any situation and isn’t one to hold a grudge. ‘He’s never been into the politics or the gamesmanship’many people are attracted to. He’s all about the actual work that only gets noticed if there’s a problem. And I don’t think there were too many problems with the mounds of work he has been responsible for.?
Indeed, when the Village of Clarkston incorporated and became the City of the Village of Clarkston in 1992, Pappas again took on the title and responsibilities of clerk, this time on top of his manager and treasurer duties.
John called his dad a ‘damn nice guy,? and said he was ‘proud and lucky? to have him as a father.
‘If you bump into him while he’s knee deep in alligators, he’ll be just as
courteous as ever,? he said. ‘His late mother and his sister are two of the kindest people I’ve ever known, and he’s cut from the same cloth.?
Across town, everyone seemed to agree. At a retirement party held at the Clarkston Caf? on June 30’the last day of Clarkston’s fiscal year, and now, officially, ‘Art Pappas Day?’Pappas was honored with accolades from State Rep. John Stakoe, Oakland County Commissioner Tom Middleton and Independence Township Clerk Shelagh VanderVeen, who called her fellow clerk ‘Mr. Everything.?
‘He’s always this calm in the midst of a storm,? VanderVeen said later. ‘As clerk, you tend to get all keyed up and worried during the election, but he’s always taking everything in stride.?
VanderVeen said she and Pappas struck up a friendship after she was elected in the township four years ago, noting the two would ‘kind of pal around? during mandatory election trainings.
‘He’s the epitome of a public servant, and we need more of that type of individual in government. It’s too bad we can’t clone him,? she said with a laugh. ‘He’s a good man. I’m going to miss him.?
Pappas said it was the people who make up the community he’s going to miss.
‘Interaction with people, it’s a big thing with any job,? he said. ‘The people you work with and come in contact with, and the residents as they come in to pay bills. That’s what I’m going to miss most’the people.?
Over the years, he said, several of the city’s larger projects’sewers in the 70s, the water main venture and cityhood in the 90s’have been difficult, but worthwhile.
‘When we did the sewers in the early 70s we thought that was a big project because our taxes were $15-$20,? he said. ‘Then they went up to a couple hundred dollars and people thought they were going to go broke.?
The sewers were paid off when the water main project started, he said, but another huge multi-year project was underway.
Because of favorable interest rates, the bond council recommended getting the whole job finished at once, rather than spreading it into phases.
‘So we did the whole village,? Pappas said. ‘That was a big project for a little village.?
The controversial issue of cityhood still raises ire among some, but these days, the sore spot has mostly healed.
‘It was a very political thing,? Pappas recalls. ‘There was some strong opposition, and strong feelings in favor of cityhood, the big thing being they wanted to control their own destiny.?
It took about five years from start to finish, but in February 1992, Clarkston’s city charter passed 206-194.
Today, just over a week into his retirement, Pappas feels he’s left the city in capable hands.
Dennis Ritter, city resident and former Waterford Township board member, has taken over as city manager, while Jan Gilespie takes over the roles of clerk and treasurer.
‘They’re both very capable,? Pappas said, noting he recommended the city council replace him with at least two hires, as the three-fold job of manager, clerk and treasurer was often overwhelming.
‘It was like a snowball effect, and some days it was just crazy,? he said. ‘You’d be bouncing around from manager to clerk to treasurer, and if two or three things need attention, what do you do first??
But office assistant Marcy Rotondo said Pappas left the city offices in good shape.
‘He always made sure things were in order,? she said. ‘He’s a brilliant man who taught me a whole lot’he couldn’t be more pleasant, or easy to work with.?
Rotondo, who hired in with the city about eight years ago, called Pappas an ‘all-around good man.?
‘It’s been pleasant every day,? she said. ‘I’ve never had a bad moment or heard a harsh word.?
In his characteristic, easy-going way, Pappas insists his only plans for retirement are to take one day at a time, and maybe a trip now and then to the Petoskey area home he and Maryann own.
Some, however, think Pappas may just find another calling.
‘Art has one of Clarkston’s finest senses of humor, but you wouldn’t know it because he delivers it with a dryness you can only compare to sand,? said Clarkstonite Curt Catallo. ‘I think there’s a Greek comedian in there just waiting to come out.?