A lengthy education

Published 5:00 pm Saturday, December 25, 2010

Jerry McCarthy, who has worked for 32 with Austin Utilities and 11 as its general manager, will retire effective Dec. 31. - Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com

When 100 mph straight-line winds swept through Austin on June 27, 1998, causing 90 percent of the city to lose power, Jerry McCarthy was Director of Administrative Services at Austin Utilities — unbeknownst to him, the wind would soon push him into the role of general manager.

“Everything was down. Trees were down,” said McCarthy, thinking back on the winds. “My house alone was out of power for five days.”

Thanks to his two decades of prior experience working for Austin Utilities, McCarthy managed to keep the situation under control, bringing back 60 percent of Austin’s electricity in two days and 100 percent of it by July 3, six days after the winds initially ripped through town.

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“I remember cooking pizzas on my grill in my backyard,” he said. “Our crews can only do so much. We were working 24/7.”

Come Dec. 31, when he retires after 32 years at Austin Utilities and 11 years as general manager, McCarthy will have other exciting events — hopefully minus the power outages — to anticipate.

Mostly, though, McCarthy will miss the people with which he works and has worked over the years.

“I love Austin,” he said. “It’s a great place to work. The people at Austin Utilities have been fantastic to work with.”

Bonnie Rietz, former Austin mayor, said she and McCarthy had a close working relationship during her time as mayor.

“The working relationship between the utilities and the city is just excellent,” said Rietz. “It helps to have somebody very capable such as Jerry in that position. He really stepped into that role and did such a good job.”

Rietz said McCarthy became general manager when she was mayor, and the communication between the city and utilities immediately improved.

“He’s a really fun person to work with,” she said. “I enjoy his personality.”

Former Utility Board commissioner Larry Pfiel echoed Rietz’ words about the retiring general manager, saying he is very professional and well-respected in the utility business.

“He contributed so much as general manager,” Pfiel said. “He provided a lot of input and made recommendations to the board that, in general, we supported just because of his level of expertise and knowledge. He administered very effectively.”

McCarthy said the challenges of the job only made the job more enjoyable and exciting.

“Every day it’s a different challenge,” he explained. “Whether it’s the storm that came through (in 1998) or watching when there’s a major disaster, it’s never dull.”

However, as his retirement date approaches, McCarthy is looking forward to doing something different with his time.

McCarthy said he has many opportunities waiting for him once he closes the door that has been open for over three decades. Although he didn’t specify what those opportunities might include, he specified that he wants to visit his eight grandchildren more often than he has over the last few years.

“It’s been a big 32-year learning process,” he said. “I’m excited. It’s cliche, probably, but it’s a new chapter. I’ve got to do something different now.”