Leonard Hendricks...26 Years Later

Auburn Hills experienced a true honor today when we had the opportunity to celebrate the contributions of Leonard Hendricks.  

Leonard retired 26 years ago after having served as Auburn Hills’ first City Manager.  With few words and humble as ever, Mr. Hendricks attended a gathering today with family, friends, and former and current colleagues for an unveiling ceremony for which he had no knowledge.  

LEONARD’S LANE

Back in his City Manager days, Leonard would park his car quite a distance away from the entrance to City Hall in another part of the municipal campus.  He used that opportunity to walk and the pathway he used, unbeknownst to him, was affectionately referred to as “Leonard’s Lane” by a number of the employees.  

Today, that routine of walking along that pathway into the office each and every day was memorialized with the unveiling of a park bench along that same pathway; and a sign on the lamppost that lights that pathway now reads “Leonard’s Lane”.  

LEADING THE WAY

Mr. Hendricks can certainly be credited with setting the City of Auburn Hills on a course for success, and to this day the many plans and policies he recommended and were adopted by the City Council can still be witnessed in the community.  

As the current City Manager, I can appreciate the groundwork he laid and 26 years after his retirement, I can only say that I work to continue to support the things that have for a very long time been in place.  Everyone at Auburn Hills congratulates Leonard on the tribute bestowed upon him today and we thank him for his visionary leadership during the most important time in the life of Auburn Hills, its infancy.  

Tom Tanghe, City Manager