Concord Hires Sr. Assistant City Attorney to Guide Land Use Projects

CONCORD, CA (Jan. 26, 2022) — Concord City Attorney Susanne Brown announced the hiring of Thomas Capriola as Senior Assistant City Attorney, effective Jan. 24, 2022.

Since 2010, Mr. Capriola has served as Deputy County Counsel for Napa County, where he was the primary attorney for the Department of Public Works. He also previously served as an associate at McDonough, Holland & Allen (2007-2010), which advises and represents public agencies on a variety of legal matters.

Mr. Capriola will primarily work on land use issues and he will advise the Community Development Department (consisting of the Building Division, Engineering Division, Housing Division, and Planning Division), and the Concord Planning Commission.

“We are excited to welcome Tom to our team,” Brown said. “He brings extensive knowledge of local government law and procedures, and we know that he will be a tremendous asset to the City of Concord.”

Mr. Capriola has considerable experience in government contracting, public finance, and real property. Over the past few years, he worked with staff to re-envision the development of the Napa County Airport and take steps to facilitate it, including a successful unlawful detainer action and negotiating with the largest fixed base operators in the industry.

As a member of Napa County’s Emergency Operations Center, he advised staff through 12 declared emergencies, including the 2014 South Napa Earthquake, 2017 Napa County Fires, 2019 LNU and Glass Fires, as well as the COVID-19 pandemic. In this role, he helped secure millions of dollars of additional federal funds to reconstruct damaged County infrastructure.

“I find it incredibly rewarding to help staff and decision makers navigate complex issues and realize positive results for the community,” Capriola said. “I look forward to continuing those efforts in Concord and am thrilled be a part of Susanne Brown’s team with the City Attorney’s Office.”

Mr. Capriola received his law degree from the University of California, Davis, and his bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of California, Berkeley.