Sonora, CA – Clarke Broadcasting has learned that Sonora City Administrator Melissa Eads is stepping down from that position, and the city has already chosen a replacement.
Eads was hired as an interim administrator for Sonora in January of 2022 and then took on the role permanently after six months. Sonora Mayor Ann Segerstrom says Eads will be missed. “We’re sad. Melissa has been a terrific leader for us in these past three-and-a-half years, but I think that she has also given us the tools and the training to make sure that the momentum that is now in process will continue.”
Eads has accepted the role of Assistant City Manager with the City of Dixon, population 20,296, in Solano County. The current city manager, Jim Lindley, explained that Eads is being groomed to take over his position when he eventually retires.
Before leading Sonora, Eads was the Angels Camp City Administrator for nearly four years before taking the job in Sonora, which she has also held for almost four years. She released this statement:
“It is with sadness and excitement that I announce my resignation from the City of Sonora. Sadness, because I am leaving a supportive council, an engaged and beautiful community, and a capable team of leaders who I find both colleagues and mentors. But excitement, to venture out and explore new opportunities in a later phase of life in areas beyond the places I have spent a lifetime calling “home.” The rest of Eads’ statement can be found at the bottom of the page.
Sonora city leaders have tapped Director of Administrative Services Chris Gorsky, who oversees the finance department, for the job. He has worked with Eads during her tenure, and Mayor Segerstrom shared, “He [Gorsky] actually interviewed 3 ½ years ago when we hired Melissa, and he did a great interview then. He’s only matured in the job and gotten more and more instrumental and incremental in the position he’s in now. So, we [the city council] have all faith and confidence that he will do a great job.”
Eads’s last day is November 28, 2025. The Sonora City Council will approve Gorsky at its Monday, November 17, 2025, meeting when details of his contract and terms, including salary, will be made public, according to Mayor Segerstrom. Gorsky’s first day on the job will be December 1, 2025.
The rest of Eads’s statement is below:
“I wish to express my sincere gratitude to the Council, Community, and Staff who have afforded me this opportunity to serve in this capacity. There have been many accomplishments achieved by the City Team over the past several years, of which I am honored to have played a role. I leave the City of Sonora with a clear vision for the future, projects positioned for delivery, and a ready team capable of advancing the goals of the community. Thank you, for allowing me to be your City Administrator; my memories of Sonora will not soon be forgotten, and I will miss our rural country home.”
