Tom Butt

Tom Butt
Born	Thomas King Butt 23 3, 1944
Birthplace	Albuquerque, New Mexico, U.S.
Nationality	American
Occupation	Politician, architect
Known for	Longest continuously serving council member in Richmond, California history; 6th Mayor of Richmond
Education	University of California, Los Angeles (MArch)
Children	2
Website	[http://www.tombutt.com/ Official site]

Thomas King Butt (born March 23, 1944) is an American politician and architect who served as the 6th Mayor of Richmond, California, from January 13, 2015, to January 10, 2023. Before ascending to the mayoralty, Butt served on the Richmond City Council for more than two decades, making him the longest continuously serving council member in the city's history. A registered Democrat, Butt also served as vice-mayor in 2002 and again in 2012. Over the course of his career in public service, Butt combined his professional background as a licensed architect with a sustained engagement in municipal governance, urban planning, environmental advocacy, and community development in Richmond and the broader East Bay region. A Vietnam War veteran, Butt brought a wide range of life experiences to his role in city leadership. In September 2021, he announced that he would not seek reelection, signaling his departure from public life after decades of service to the city. He was succeeded as mayor by Eduardo Martinez in January 2023.

Early Life

Thomas King Butt was born on March 23, 1944, in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Details about his upbringing and family background in New Mexico remain limited in available public sources. As a young man, Butt served in the United States military during the Vietnam War. His military service preceded his entry into both professional architecture and public service, and it informed aspects of his later civic engagement, particularly his interest in veterans' issues and historical preservation related to wartime contributions.

After completing his military service, Butt relocated to California, where he would build his professional career and eventually settle in Richmond, a city on the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay. Richmond's history as an industrial and shipbuilding center during World War II — particularly its association with the Kaiser Shipyards and the Rosie the Riveter workforce — would later become a subject of deep interest and advocacy for Butt during his years on the city council and as mayor.

Education

Tom Butt received his undergraduate education at the University of Arkansas, where he earned both a Bachelor of Arts (BA) and a Bachelor of Architecture (BArch) degree. He subsequently pursued graduate studies in architecture at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), where he earned a Master of Architecture (MArch) degree. His architectural training at two major universities provided the professional foundation for his career as a licensed architect and informed his approach to urban planning and development issues during his long tenure in Richmond city government.

Career

Architecture

In addition to his career in public service, Tom Butt has maintained a professional practice as a licensed architect. He is the principal of Interactive Resources, Inc., an architecture and planning firm based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The firm has been involved in a range of architectural and planning projects. Butt's dual career as both an architect and a politician provided him with a technical understanding of land use, urban design, construction, and environmental planning that he frequently applied to policy discussions on the Richmond City Council and during his tenure as mayor.

Richmond City Council

Tom Butt served on the Richmond City Council for more than 20 years, making him the longest continuously serving council member in the city's history. He first entered city politics through election to the council, where he established himself as a consistent presence in Richmond's governance. During his time on the council, Butt served as vice-mayor on two occasions — in 2002 and in 2012.

Throughout his council tenure, Butt was involved in a wide range of municipal issues, including land use planning, environmental policy, public safety, and economic development. Richmond, as a city with a significant industrial base — including the presence of a major Chevron oil refinery — frequently faced complex questions at the intersection of economic activity, environmental health, and community well-being.

One issue that drew Butt's engagement was the development of the San Francisco Bay Trail through Richmond, which required negotiating access through property controlled by Chevron. The extension of the Bay Trail along the Richmond shoreline was a matter of public interest, involving environmental, recreational, and land-use considerations. The project required cooperation between the city, Chevron, and various public agencies to ensure that the trail could be routed along the waterfront, and Butt was among the public officials engaged in these discussions.

Butt also took an active interest in historical preservation, particularly as it related to Richmond's role during World War II. The city had been home to the Kaiser Shipyards, where tens of thousands of workers — including large numbers of women, famously known as "Rosie the Riveters" — contributed to the war effort by building ships. Butt served on the board of trustees of the Rosie the Riveter Trust, an organization dedicated to preserving the memory and physical heritage of Richmond's home front contributions during World War II. This work aligned with the broader effort to establish and support the Rosie the Riveter/World War II Home Front National Historical Park in Richmond, a unit of the National Park Service.

During his years on the council, Butt became known for his detailed engagement with policy matters and his extensive communication with constituents. He maintained a personal website and forum through which he shared his views on city issues, policy analyses, and commentary on Richmond governance. This practice of direct communication with the public was a distinctive feature of Butt's approach to local government, predating the widespread use of social media by elected officials.

Mayor of Richmond

In 2014, Tom Butt was elected mayor of Richmond, California, succeeding Gayle McLaughlin, who had served two terms as mayor under the banner of the Richmond Progressive Alliance. Butt's victory was covered by national media, including an appearance on The Rachel Maddow Show on MSNBC in November 2014, reflecting broader interest in Richmond's municipal politics at the time. Richmond had attracted national attention for its progressive political movements, including efforts to use eminent domain to address the foreclosure crisis and its high-profile battles with Chevron over refinery safety and political influence.

Butt took office as mayor on January 13, 2015. As mayor, he served as the city's chief elected official, presiding over city council meetings and representing Richmond in regional and state-level discussions. His administration navigated a range of challenges, including public safety concerns, economic development, environmental regulation, housing affordability, and the management of city finances.

Richmond's relationship with Chevron, which operates one of the largest oil refineries on the West Coast within the city's boundaries, remained a significant issue throughout Butt's tenure as mayor. The refinery's presence shaped many of the city's policy discussions, from environmental health and air quality to tax revenue and economic development. Butt's approach to the Chevron relationship was informed by his long experience on the city council and his professional background in architecture and planning.

During his two terms on the city council and his mayoralty, Butt also engaged with issues of housing and development. Richmond, like many Bay Area cities, experienced significant pressures related to housing costs, gentrification, and the need for new construction, particularly during the period of rapid economic growth in the San Francisco Bay Area technology sector in the 2010s.

Butt maintained his practice of communicating directly with constituents through his personal website and e-forum throughout his time as mayor. His posts covered a wide range of topics, from detailed analyses of city budget items to commentary on state and regional policy developments. This transparency and volume of public communication was a hallmark of his approach to governance.

Decision Not to Seek Reelection

In September 2021, Tom Butt announced that he would not seek reelection as mayor of Richmond, effectively ending a public career in Richmond city government that had spanned more than two decades. In reporting on his decision, Richmond Confidential described Butt as leaving public life after his long tenure in city leadership. His decision not to run again opened the field for a competitive mayoral race in 2022.

Butt served out the remainder of his term, leaving office on January 10, 2023, when he was succeeded by Eduardo Martinez. The transition marked the end of an era in Richmond politics, as Butt had been a fixture of the city's governance for a generation.

Post-Mayoral Activity

Following his departure from office, Butt continued to maintain his personal website and forum, where he occasionally commented on Richmond city affairs and other matters of public interest. His continued engagement through this platform reflected a persistent interest in the city's direction even after leaving elected office.

In 2023, a lawsuit was filed alleging that Richmond's vice-mayor had violated term limits for elected officials, a case that drew attention to the legal framework governing the length of service for Richmond's elected leaders. Although the lawsuit concerned a different official, it highlighted ongoing questions about term limits and governance in Richmond — issues that had been part of the political landscape throughout Butt's tenure.

Personal Life

Tom Butt has two children. He has been a long-term resident of Richmond, California, where he has lived and worked for decades. His personal website, TomButt.com, has served as a public platform for his views and activities, both during and after his time in office.

Butt's military service during the Vietnam War is a notable aspect of his personal history, and his veteran status informed his interest in historical preservation and veterans' issues during his career in public office.

In addition to his governmental duties, Butt's involvement with the Rosie the Riveter Trust reflected a personal commitment to preserving the historical memory of Richmond's home front contributions during World War II. His engagement with historical preservation extended beyond his official responsibilities and represented a sustained area of personal interest.

Recognition

Tom Butt's long service to the city of Richmond earned him recognition as the longest continuously serving council member in the city's history. His election as mayor in 2014 and his service through January 2023 represented the culmination of a career in Richmond governance that few other local officials have matched in duration or breadth of involvement.

His appearance on The Rachel Maddow Show on MSNBC following the 2014 mayoral election reflected the national attention that Richmond's politics attracted during that period. The city's progressive political movements, its battles with corporate interests, and its innovative policy experiments drew media coverage that extended well beyond the Bay Area.

Butt's work on the board of trustees of the Rosie the Riveter Trust was an additional form of public recognition of his commitment to Richmond's historical heritage. The Rosie the Riveter/World War II Home Front National Historical Park, which the Trust helped support, has become one of Richmond's most prominent cultural and historical institutions.

Legacy

Tom Butt's legacy in Richmond, California, is defined by the extraordinary length and continuity of his service to the city. Serving on the city council for more than two decades before becoming mayor, Butt was a central figure in Richmond's governance during a period of significant transformation. The city evolved from a post-industrial community grappling with economic decline, public safety challenges, and environmental concerns into a municipality engaged in innovative policy experiments and renewed civic engagement.

His professional background as an architect distinguished him from many of his contemporaries in local government. The combination of technical expertise in planning and design with decades of experience in municipal governance gave Butt a distinctive perspective on issues ranging from land use and development to environmental regulation and infrastructure investment.

Butt's commitment to transparency and direct communication with the public, through his long-running personal website and e-forum, represented an early and sustained example of an elected official using digital platforms to engage with constituents. This practice, which he maintained throughout his career and into his post-mayoral period, set a standard for public communication in Richmond city government.

His involvement in the preservation of Richmond's World War II home front history — particularly through the Rosie the Riveter Trust — contributed to a broader cultural effort to recognize and honor the contributions of wartime workers, many of them women and minorities, who played a critical role in the American war effort. The establishment and continued operation of the Rosie the Riveter/World War II Home Front National Historical Park stands as a lasting testament to the kind of historical preservation work that Butt and his colleagues championed.

After leaving office in January 2023, Butt's long record of public service remained a reference point for discussions about governance, civic engagement, and the role of long-serving local officials in shaping the character and direction of their communities.