Embarking on a California adventure

Danette Goulet

NEWPORT-MESA -- After working on Disney’s California Adventure,

overseeing the renovations to Newport-Mesa schools will be a walk in the

park for Tom Holtom.

Holtom was awarded the one-year, $160,000 contract with the

Newport-Mesa Unified School District as the owner’s representative for

the $163-million school bond repairs that will soon get underway.

“He will be an extra set of eyes and ears out there for us -- an extra

level of safeguard,” said Mike Fine, the district’s assistant

superintendent of business services.

Although the contract is for a year, the intention is for it to be

renewed each year until all of the work is done, according to both

parties.

The position is one that was created by the school board in the

planning stage before the bond’s passage, when trustees decided it was

necessary to form an extensive, 31-member oversight committee and

distance themselves from the project to garner community support.

“His role is the school district representative out there dealing on a

daily basis with construction companies, interacting with contractors,

principals, any parents who may have questions,” Fine said. “Kind of an

extension of me out there on site on a daily basis.”

The position will not be a new one for Holtom.

His work on Disney’s newest $1.4-billion theme park is just the latest

in a string of prestigious jobs for the Newport Beach resident.

Before his five-year stint as a principal construction manager for

Disney’s new park, he was the project director for the Caesars Magical

Empire in Las Vegas. The budget on that project was more than $48

million.

And before helping to create Caesars’ lavish magical dining

experience, he acted as a project manager for Caesars’ trend-setting

shops -- The Forum Shops at Caesars in Las Vegas. The mall project of 80

shops done in an ancient Roman forum style had a budget of more than $55

million.

Despite his extensive resume, Holtom said he is excited by the

opportunity to stay near home and give back to the community where he has

lived for more than 30 years.

“I can stay local,” the 56-year-old said. “As a longtime resident, I

will look after these expenditures as if they were my own, because it is,

in part, mine.”

Although his daughter did not attend Newport-Mesa’s public schools,

Holton has extensive ties to public schools. His mother was a teacher,

both of his grandmothers were teachers, and his wife of more than 20

years, Mary Anne, taught at Corona del Mar High School for four years.

Those who know Holtom and have worked with him in the past are

commending Newport-Mesa for having made a great choice.

“Tom has always been very insightful,” said Bob Heimerl, the owner of

Mowery-Thomason Inc., an Anaheim firm that worked on California

Adventure. “He knows what has to be done and will follow through. He has

a good construction sense, very good way of handling situations. He is

fair -- fair for owner, as well as fair for contractors. He will insist

on things being done that are shown on contracts and, if they are not

shown, he will be fair to contractor.”