From the Ground Up to General Manager, Rod Hart Retires After 45 Years
Apr 22, 2026 12:38PM ● By Gail Bullen, River Valley Times Reporter
Rod Hart, the Rancho Murieta Association’s then-maintenance manager, reacts as Stonehouse Park is dedicated in his honor in October 2022. From left are then-RMA Board President Rob Brown, then-Rancho Murieta Community Services District President Tim Maybee and Summerfest Board President Sherry Carrillo. Now the RMA general manager, Hart retires on May 1. Photo by Gail Bullen
From the Ground Up to General Manager, Rod Hart Retires After 45 Years [5 Images]
Click Any Image To Expand
RANCHO MURIETA, CA (MPG) - When Rod Hart sat down for his job interview with the Rancho Murieta Association in 1981, he was asked a simple question: What is your long-range goal?
Hart didn’t hesitate. Looking at then-Maintenance Manager Bob Cook, he answered: “I want his job.”
Forty-five years later – after rising from a laborer earning $6.50 an hour to maintenance manager and, ultimately, general manager – Hart is retiring, having shaped nearly every corner of Rancho Murieta along the way.
Early Roots
Before he arrived in Rancho Murieta, Hart’s path was anything but conventional.
At age 13, he was already working, cleaning and polishing floors at his school and working at a drive-in store in Tennessee before his family moved to California. He later graduated from Folsom High School, where he wrestled and played football, and began working as a freshman at the Folsom Dam mechanic and welding shops, where he continued throughout high school.
He later managed multiple gas stations before leaving that job abruptly after being wrongly accused of theft.
“I quit right there,” he said. “I wasn’t going to work for an organization that would accuse me without proof.” He later learned that the district manager had rolled back the meters.
After moving into construction work, a winter layoff led him to Rancho Murieta and a job that would become a lifetime career.
“I wanted a place to stay, start a family and build something,” he said.
Building a Career
Hart began as a common-area maintenance worker, digging trenches and installing irrigation lines. “When I started, the community really didn’t go much past Laguna Joaquin,” he said.
Over the next 12 years, he worked his way up through a series of positions: from laborer to foreman to mechanic. He was initially turned down for the maintenance manager position because he did not have a bachelor’s degree, but was later asked to take the job when the successful candidate failed to complete probation. He would go on to hold the role for roughly 30 years before stepping into the general manager position three years ago.
“Every job is about attitude and wanting to learn,” he said.
Bridge Unites Community
Two of the most transformative projects during Hart’s tenure came to define Rancho Murieta.
The first was the wooden bridge over the Cosumnes River connecting the north and south sides of the community: a project Hart calls the most significant he witnessed.
Hart credited Randy Jenco, owner of Viking Construction, with leading construction of the bridge, with support from then-General Manager Greg Vorster. The bridge was dedicated in 2007.
“There was definitely a sense of division between North and South prior to that bridge,” Hart said. “A lot of that went away once we finally got a bridge installed.”
Accidental Amphitheater
The second defining project was the Lake Clementia amphitheater, an unexpected feature that took shape during the expansion of Lake Clementia Park.
“When I started, Clementia Park had a small lawn, a little sand on the beach and no real infrastructure,” Hart said. Over time, the park expanded significantly, adding amenities and improving shoreline access.
The amphitheater, now a centerpiece for concerts and events, came about almost by accident.
Working with Operating Engineers Local 3, Hart and his crew needed fill for the Clementia parking lot. “We decided, well, let’s just go ahead and take a bunch of dirt out over here, and we’ll tell everybody it’s an amphitheater.” They graded the slope and seeded it with grass.
At the time, the decision drew criticism. “I got scolded: ‘You’ll never use it,’” he recalled. “But we needed the dirt.”
Today, it is the community’s most unique feature: an amenity more typical of a resort town than a small gated community.
Projects Big and Small
Hart’s imprint extends far beyond those headline projects, so much so that only a handful can be highlighted.
At Stonehouse Park, he helped to transform former wastewater ponds into a multi-use community space with baseball, soccer and lacrosse fields, along with a range of recreational amenities. In 2022, the RMA Board dedicated the park to Hart during a Summerfest ceremony in recognition of his 40 years of service.
He also oversaw improvements at Laguna Joaquin and Riverview parks, as well as the development of Greens Park.
Hart also helped to build the association’s maintenance shop, completing the concrete work alongside his brother and working with the full staff on the rest of the construction.
“That was my job for an entire year,” he said.
He also helped to transform a former developer’s sales office into the current RMA building. Earlier, the association operated out of a small office attached to a fire station it built to attract a fire department, and before that, out of a single-wide trailer.
Piece by Piece
Much of the work on projects over the years was carried out not through large contracts, but by RMA staff, often while balancing their day-to-day responsibilities.
“We only have so many people,” Hart said. “When we’re working on projects, we’re not maintaining the assets, so we have to stop, go back, maintain then come back to the project.”
A People-First Approach
Despite the scale of his accomplishments, Hart consistently deflects credit.
“I’m nothing without the team,” he said. “I’m here to make heroes, not be a hero.”
He emphasized creating a supportive, respectful workplace and applied that same approach with residents.
“I don’t even start talking until they’re done,” he said. “I get paid to try to put a smile on everybody’s face,” he added.
Shaped by Mentors, Continuity
Hart credits former General Manager Greg Vorster with shaping his leadership style, particularly in staying steady under pressure and being honest when he didn’t have answers.
“You can still smile through adversity,” he said.
He also credited the many RMA boards he worked under, saying their support was essential to advancing projects.
Continuity has been key to the association’s success, he added, noting that many staff members have decades of experience.
Beyond RMA
Hart’s connection to Rancho Murieta also shaped his personal life.
He met his wife, Danette, while she was working at the Country Store. They have been married 44 years, raised three children and now have nine grandchildren.
The couple lives in El Dorado, where Hart serves on the board of the local community hall and helps to manage a private campground near Loon Lake.
Looking Ahead
In retirement, Hart plans to spend more time on woodworking, metal fabrication, hiking and camping. While he has a long road trip planned – starting in Bodega Bay and heading north toward Canada – he said he plans to stay close to home at first to assist the next general manager during the transition.
A Lasting Legacy
Looking back, Hart said what kept him in Rancho Murieta for more than four decades was simple.
“This community gives me way more than I could ever give back,” he said.
From the trenches he dug as a young worker to the parks, the bridge and the amenities that now define the community, Hart’s legacy is visible throughout Rancho Murieta.
He came looking for a place to build something. He stayed long enough to build nearly everything.
RMA is planning a community celebration for Hart from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. May 1 at Stonehouse Park.
