Longtime De Soto Public Works director Kevin Warden has retired, after working more than 38 years for the city.
Charles Roop, who was the assistant Public Works director, has been promoted to the director job.
Warden retired on June 30. He was being paid a $76,195 annual salary, City Manager Todd Melkus said.
Roop took over the job on July 1 and will earn $60,318 a year. He was making $50,318 as the assistant public works director, Melkus said.
Warden
Warden, 61, began working for the city as a maintenance employee, making $4 an hour. For the past 19 years, he was the director of Public Works, overseeing maintenance of the city’s infrastructure, including more than 56 acres of parks and recreational facilities.
The De Soto City Hall was closed for a couple of hours early on June 30 so employees could celebrate Warden’s retirement at the nearby Gathering Room.
“I thought it was at City Hall,” Warden said. “I went in there and no one was there.”
He was then redirected to the correct venue where he was greeted by fellow employees, De Soto City Council members and his family.
Warden said he is looking forward to spending more time with his two daughters, Melissa and Alicia, and his grandchildren: Emily, Miles and Asher.
One of his grandsons lives next door to him, but the other two grandchildren live in Springfield.
Warden said it will be nice to spend a week at a time with his out-of-town family whenever he wants.
He also said he plans to travel more.
“Florida is definitely in the plans – Destin,” he said.
While he’s happy about retirement, Warden said he will miss the camaraderie in the Public Works Department and the De Soto Police Department.
He said the Public Works Department was created about 18 years ago, consolidating the parks, water and street departments.
During his tenure, Warden said he mapped and created databases the city has been using for decades, and just a couple of years ago, he created a work order database that has been helpful.
Warden said he is proud of improvements to Spross Park, especially the fountain there.
He said the city is making good use of funds to improve the city parks, like the splash pad that opened for Memorial Day at the Athletic Complex and the multipurpose field being built next to the Athletic Complex.
Melkus said Warden was instrumental in the construction of the wastewater facility and operated that facility for many years before becoming the Public Works director.
“It has been a pleasure to get to work with Kevin over the last five years and I wish him the best in his retirement, although his knowledge and expertise will be dearly missed,” Melkus said.
Roop
Roop, 44, has worked for the city for 19 years and has been the assistant Public Works director since 2008.
“Charles has built experience in every field within the Public Works department before becoming the assistant Public Works director,” Melkus said.
“You will not find a more reliable person than Charles and I look forward to seeing him take on the responsibilities of this position.”
Warden also said he is confident Roop will do a great job, adding that the department needs more employees.
When the Public Works Department is fully-staffed, it has 13 employees, and the city needs to hire five more employees to reach that number, Melkus said.
“We need people to apply,” Roop said.
He said he is excited about his new role and wants to see the department continue to improve parks and the water and wastewater systems.
Melkus said the city hasn’t filled the assistant Public Works director job yet.
“As of this time, we are going to wait until the upcoming budget year discussions to determine the future layout of the department concerning supervisors, etc.,” he said.
The new budget year begins on Nov. 1.