by JohnGlidden.com | glid24@protonmail.com | October 19, 2026
VALLEJO – The Greater Vallejo Recreation District (GVRD) is expected to name Brad Helfenberger as general manager this week.
Helfenberger has mostly recently served as director of information services for the city of Antioch. Prior to that he served as the city’s assistant city manager for nine months, and before that as Antioch’s parks and recreation director from February 2021 to April 2025, according to his LinkedIn profile.
“Before joining the City of Antioch, Mr. Helfenberger spent more than a decade
with the City of Emeryville, where he played a key role in developing and implementing the Emeryville Center of Community Life (ECCL), an innovative partnership with the Emery Unified School District that brought a K–12 public school, community center, aquatics center, and sports facilities together on a single campus,” according to the GVRD staff report naming Helfenberger general manager.
Helfenberger will earn $245,000 in annual salary, according to the proposed Employment Memorandum of Understanding. The initial MOU is for three years, with Helfenberger starting on December 7. The GM is the chief executive of the GVRD which oversees 33 parks throughout the city of Vallejo.
He will earn $245,000 in annual salary with his start day to begin with GVRD on Monday, December 7, according to the proposed He will be hired for an initial three-year term. The GM is the chief executive of the district which oversees 33 parks throughout the city.
Helfenberger replaces interim GM Pamela Sloan, who has served the district for more than six months following the retirement of longtime General Manager Gabe Lanusse.
Lanusse left in mid-April with his official retirement taking place in early July. The five-person GVRD Board of Directors appointed Pamela Solan as interim general manager. She began with the district on April 20.
Prior to her time with GVRD, Sloan has served as a consultant with Municipal Resource Group (MRG), a full-service management consulting firm. MRG matches technical experts with organizations. Sloan held numerous positions with the city of Kansas City, Missouri, for nearly 30 years before joining the city of Stockton. There she served as Director of Community Services from 2004 to 2011, according to her bio.
In March, the GVRD board selected MRG, paying the company $49,000, to conduct a recruitment for the interim and permanent general manager, according to board minutes.
The five-person board of directors is appointed by two different sources: The Vallejo City Council and the Solano County Board of Supervisors.
The council appoints representatives to three of the seats. They currently include Chair Thomas Judt, Secretary Nicole Person, and Director Rita Fryar. Meanwhile, Vice Chair Ward Stewart was appointed by Supervisor Monica Brown, while Director Olivia Ruiz was appointed by Supervisor Cassandra James.
The GVRD board is scheduled to meet at 6:30 p.m., Thursday, October 22, inside the Administrative Office-Board Room, 401 Amador Street.