Pleasanton - Pleasanton's newly appointed chief will be right at home as the city's top cop.

    Nearly six months after Pleasanton Police Chief Bill Eastman announced his plans to retire, city officials named Tracy police Chief Timothy P. Neal as their choice to replace Eastman.

    Neal, a Pleasanton resident for nearly 20 years, will take the helm Aug. 30.

    "I consider Pleasanton my hometown," Neal said Tuesday.

    Neal 45 is married and has a 15-year-old son and 11-year-old daughter, both of whom attend Pleasanton schools.

    In his 18 months as Tracy's police chief, Neal earned the reputation of being innovative and dynamic, and in Pleasanton will move toward having the department take more of an active role within the community, Pleasanton City Manager Deborah Acosta said.

    Acosta who appointed Neal, said that before the search began, she created a list of desirable characteristics that city officials were looking for in a new chief.

'Can make a tough decision'

    "He met every single one of them," Acosta said.  "He's warm and engaging, but can make a tough decision when he has to."

    Neal topped about 80 candidates, who applied from across the country, and will earn $115,000 annually in his new position.

    Neal has an open and accessible management style and will head a department of about 80 officers and 40 other employees while managing an $11 million-a-year budget.

    He planned to stay in Tracy for the rest of his career, but changed his mind when his "dream job" became available.  "It is unusual.  I wish the timing was different.  But I recognized that there was only one shot.  It was always my dream job," Neal said.

    The search began in January when Eastman, 58, announced his plans to retire at the end of the year after 18 years with the department.

    "Bill did an outstanding job of building a professional police department in Pleasanton," Acosta said.

    Eastman took charge of the department and it's 30 officers in 1981, when the station sat on Main Street.  Two years later, the police department moved to its current home on Bernal Avenue.

    "I think things are going to be very good," said Craig Eicher, president of the Pleasanton Police Officers' Association.  "I think he's going to be good for the city and add some insight and openness."

Career took off in Union City

    Neal began his career in 1976 in Union City, where he worked as a field training officer, homicide investigator and watch commander.

    In 1987, he was hired as a lieutenant at the Mountain View Police Department and was later promoted to the rank of captain, where he managed an 80-member patrol division and an $8 million budget.

    In 1997, he was appointed Tracy's police chief.  There he managed a staff of 96 and about 70 volunteers with an $8.5 million annual budget.

    During his tenure, Neal repaired rifts between management and rank-and-file officers, co-workers said.  He also hired more officers, worked closely with residents and gave strong support to the department's anti-drug unit, supporters said.

Tri-Valley Herald - Wednesday, July 21, 1999

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