The city council thanked outgoing Fire Chief Leonard Albanese for his eight years of service to Chelsea with a resolution on Monday night.
Albanese is retiring effective this Friday, when Deputy Chief John Quatieri will take over the reins of the department.
A number of the councilors thanked Albanese for the work he has done for the department and the city and wished him well on his retirement.
“I want to thank the chief for the extraordinary work you do,” said District 8 Councilor Calvin Brown. “He jumped right in and did a great job with our budgeting here. You had a great crew … but you were the captain of the ship.”
District 6 Councilor Giovanni Recupero said Albanese was one of the best fire chiefs the city has seen, and that he always dealt with everyone in a friendly and professional manner.
“I want to thank you for coming in and really creating order out of chaos,” said District 1 Councilor Todd Taylor. “You are the consummate professional, and I really appreciate that.”
District 4 Councilor Tanairi Garcia praised Albanese for his leadership and wished him well in his retirement.
“You came to Chelsea in a very unbalanced time and you were able to put in a lot of initiatives and programs in the fire department, and we the people of Chelsea thank you,” said Councilor-at-Large Leo Robinson.
State Representative and former councilor Judith Garcia presented Albanese with a resolution upon his retirement from the state, as well as a gift from the state’s fire chiefs.
The representative said she was on the hiring committee when Albanese interviewed for the position eight years ago, and that he made an immediate impression as a leader.
“I thank you for eight years of great service,” said Garcia. “I know it wasn’t easy to be here the first few months … but you passed through that and you led with courage.”
Albanese thanked the members of the council for the resolution and their support.
“From early on, I always had the support of the council,” he said. “It has been a pleasure to serve the city of Chelsea and this historic fire department.”