Borden
Bart Borden, operations manager for the Cleveland Utilities Electric Division and a 30-year veteran of the local utility, was named to succeed the retiring Dennis Daniel as division manager. Daniel, who attended Tuesday’s monthly session and was awarded a plaque of appreciation for his career of dedicated service, closed a successful 39-year tenure with CU.
Daniel’s retirement was announced last month by CU General Manager Tom Wheeler. His long career was featured in a front-page salute published in the Thanksgiving Day edition of the Cleveland Daily Banner.
Although Daniel has already worked his final day in the office, he returned for Tuesday’s board session in order to be honored by Wheeler and CU colleagues, as well as by board chairman Aubrey Ector, and members Eddie Cartwright, Chari Buckner and Cleveland Mayor Tom Rowland who is also a board member.
Longtime board member Mitchell Lyle could not attend.
“Bart has a broad range of experience throughout the Electric Division,” Wheeler said. “We’re really glad to have him take over this new assignment. We’re looking forward to working with him. I’m sure he will be successful in his new endeavor.”
The general manager added, “We’re really glad to have Bart on board.”
As he did in the November board session, Wheeler praised Daniel’s years of dedicated service to Cleveland Utilities and his leadership. Wheeler said Daniel will be missed as manager of the Electric Division, but that Borden is a capable leader he feels will provide his own brand of capable leadership.
Borden launched his CU career in 1978 as a cooperative draftsman in the Engineering Department and then as a co-op engineer for almost four years. In 1981, he graduated from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville with a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering. He was promptly hired by CU in 1981 as a distribution engineer, a role he held for 3 1/2 years.
In 1985, Borden was promoted to meter services director in the Operations Department and held that position for 4 1/2 years. In 1989, he was named electric engineering manager and held this role for 20 years until 2009 when he was promoted to Electric Operations Manager to succeed the retiring Pat Ensley. He held this post for two years until accepting another promotion as Electric Division manager.
When he was named meter services director in 1985, it was about the same time that CU was implementing its new hand-held meter-reading devices, Wheeler explained.
“This was a big project for Cleveland Utilities and Bart carried it through to a successful completion,” Wheeler noted.
Borden’s wife, Jenny, is a chemistry and biology teacher, and serves as the Science Department chair at Walker Valley High School. They have two grown children, Rebecca, a Lee University and Trevecca University graduate; and a son, Chet, an Auburn University graduate. The Bordens have one grandchild.
Borden is a member and elder at The Church at Grace Point located on Old Freewill Road in Cleveland.
The new Electric Division leader said he has “... too many hobbies to mention them all.”
Before making his first report to the CU board as division manager, Borden thanked Wheeler for his vote of confidence.
“I would like to thank the employees who have helped me through the years and their comments of confidence in my abilities to meet the challenges this job will present,” Borden said. “It has been a challenging year with the storms we have weathered.”
He told the board and the small group attending Tuesday’s gathering, “I promise, with God’s help, to do my very best to serve the board, Tom [Wheeler], our employees and our customers.”
Borden then officially took the Electric Division reins and began a series of detailed updates that put a wrap on 2011, and that looked ahead to 2012.
