Fillmore official who was fire chief, assistant city manager, public works director dies
By Mike Harris, [email protected]
805-437-0323
Rigo Landeros, Fillmore's fire chief, assistant city manager and acting public works director, died Thursday night, officials said Friday.
The Fillmore native was 51.
Stunned Fillmore officials said the city was in mourning.
"Rigo was a friend to us all and his death is a shock to so many in our community" Mayor Diane McCall said in a statement. "Rigo's city family is truly in mourning today."
City Manager David Rowlands said in a statement that Landeros was "a true partner in the administration of our city. He was a true leader of our fire department, and on a personal level a great husband, father and friend. He will be greatly missed by myself and all who knew him."
A city news release said Landeros was instrumental in helping Fillmore recover from the recession "and return the city's financial picture to full solvency."
Landeros was interim city manager for about 10 months in 2012-13 after the previous city manager, Yvonne Quiring, left and before Rowlands was hired. Landeros became assistant city manager following Rowlands' hire. Landeros was Fillmore's acting public works director since 2010.
Because of the recession and a dispute that deprived the city of millions of dollars in sales tax revenue, Fillmore experienced very lean economic times from roughly 2010-13. The city laid off nearly half of its employees, slashed the pay of the ones who remained and cut services.
"We're in crisis right now, for lack of a better term, and we're all working really hard to beat this thing," Landeros said in a February 2013 interview.
The city settled the dispute, which involved medical device maker Owens & Minor's sales office in Fillmore, with the cities of Lathrop, Livermore, Industry and San Joaquin County, a few months later.
Former Simi Valley City Manager Mike Sedell gave Landeros significant credit for the settlements, which allowed Fillmore to once again start receiving sales tax revenue from the State Board of Equalization.
"Rigo played a very critical role, working with the city attorney, in trying to resolve the issues," Sedell, who worked closely with Landeros as an unpaid consultant for Fillmore, said Friday. "It was a very complex matter and Rigo fully understood it. But he also knew how to bring people together and find common ground."
Sedell said Landeros' death was "a true tragedy for the Fillmore community and beyond. He was a driving force in the community working together in a positive way to better serve its residents and bring its government closer to its people."
Landeros was born in Fillmore and raised in a home on Foothill Drive. As a boy, he liked to follow fire trucks on his bicycle and watch firefighters battling blazes.
As a teenager, he was a cadet with the Ventura County Fire Department, and after attending Oxnard College he entered the county's reserve firefighter academy. In 1991, he joined Fillmore's largely volunteer fire department part time.
For income, he started cutting meat at a Gelson's Market in Encino in the mid-1980s. He became the meat buyer for the chain and later the director of its meat, deli and cheese departments.
At the same time, he was climbing the ranks in Fillmore, becoming a volunteer fire captain in 2004. In 2009, the position of chief — a paid, full-time job — opened up. Landeros landed the job, quitting Gelson's.
"My love is the fire service," he said in the 2013 interview, noting that had no interest in staying on permanently as city manager or public works director.
Assistant Fire Chief Bill Herrera will run the department for the time being, Rowlands said. The city may look internally for a more permanent successor, he said.
"But right now, that's the furthest thing from our mind," he said.
The assistant city manager position will be left vacant, he said.
Landeros is survived by his wife, Laura Landeros; sons, David and Daniel Landeros; daughter, Christina Landeros Bingham; son-in-law, Eldon; and two granddaughters, Gabby and Mia.
Funeral arrangements are pending.
http://www.vcstar.com/news/local/fillmore/fillmores-fire-chief-assistant-city-manager-dies-28d78849-222b-0de6-e053-0100007fd58a-364664941.html
