Soon after sunset Sunday evening, Town Administrator Tony Teixeira will join Santa Claus and other town officials in flipping the switch that will bathe downtown Bristol in a sea of colorful lights for the holiday season.

It will be his last public act as town administrator.

In the closest election in recent memory, former Deputy Police Chief Steven Contente unseated Mr. Teixeira, who has served two consecutive terms in the town’s top job. After a poll location recount, absentee ballots, provisional ballots and a full recount of all voting machines, Mr. Contente came out on top by just 43 votes, after nearly 10,000 were cast. He will take over as town administrator Tuesday morning, after town officials are sworn in Monday night at the Colt School.

“Technically, Contente takes over at 6 p.m. Monday,” Mr. Teixeira said in his Town Hall office Tuesday. “At 4 p.m. Monday, I shut the lights off, drop off the keys, and I’m done.”

Mr. Teixeira has had plenty of time to reflect on his loss since the Nov. 8 election, as well as his time as administrator. He said he can’t point to anything in the last four years that would have encouraged voters to seek his ouster.

“I can not think of anything,” he said of why voters went in another direction. “I was taken aback. It does puzzle me a bit that people felt there was a need for change.”

Mr. Teixeira says he views his tenure as a success, listing multiple projects he has initiated or supported. In the past four years, improvements have been made to multiple public buildings that were in various states of disrepair, including the very visible Burnside Building on Hope Street, the former Byfield School, which is now generating revenue as a business incubator, and the former armory on Thames Street, which was converted into the Maritime Center to serve the boating industry in town. 

Mr. Teixeira pushed for road and drainage improvements throughout Bristol, improving storm drains to mitigate the routine street flooding after heavy rains, and embarking on an on-going, three-year road paving plan, which calls for the repaving of nearly 30 roads around town between this year and 2018. 

The outgoing administrator has sought to put his stamp on the Bristol waterfront, improving facilities and increasing access for residents. Beyond the Maritime Center, under his watch the town has repaired docks at Independence Park, bought the Prudence Island ferry dock, and acquired two dilapidated buildings on Thames Street next to the Ever-ready Fire Company. The historic buildings are expected to generate revenue for the town with a mixed use of commercial and residential space, the plans for which are ongoing. But the important part of the purchase was to secure more waterfront access, where docks are being built to serve residents.

“Access to the waterfront is a big one,” said Mr. Teixeira, mentioning plans in the works to extend the waterfront boardwalk from Independence Park all the way to the Robin Rug factory at Thames and Constitution streets. “That would be one of the good accomplishments to maintain perpetual access not just for residents, but for visitors - the whole public.”

As one of the key successes of his tenure, Mr. Teixeira mentions an issue his opponent routinely criticized him for - his management style. Mr. Contente has charged Mr. Teixeira with being a micro-manager who makes his subordinates uncomfortable and foments discontent. On the contrary, Mr. Teixeira sees himself as a coalition builder and an administrator who inspired cooperation and collaboration.

“I’ve always viewed it not as a boss but as a coach,” said Mr. Teixeira, an accomplished soccer coach. “One of the highlights here is the camaraderie in Town Hall — the spirit of cooperation, working together.”

That collaboration is on display during department head meetings, he said, when the department leaders coordinate ongoing projects, and when the town works with National Grid and the Bristol County Water Authority on road projects, scheduling planned repairs during the other organizations’ projects to save money and time. With the dock construction behind the Azevedo property, the Harbormaster’s Office collaborated with the Department of Public Works to use the department’s crane to drop the docks in, eliminating the need to hire a private crane operator and eliminating all cost but materials.

“The department heads are very engaged and willing to step forward on any projects,” Mr. Teixeira said. “Without players, you’re not winning any games. We’ve built a very good team. I’m very proud of that.”

A key member of the team is Mr. Teixeira’s assistant, who will be retiring at the end of his tenure. Cheryl Iiams has worked for Bristol for 34 years, all but one of them in Town Hall.

“I would not have done as well as I have without Cheryl,” Mr. Teixeria said. “She’s been literally my right hand. Her knowledge of the town… she worked here for 34 years.”

Mr. Texieira has worked for the town for six years — two as a town councilman before four as administrator — after a 30-plus year career in the school district. He said he’s not one to dwell on the past, but is satisfied with the work he has done for the town.

“In retrospect, I can not think of too many things where I should have done something different, even with the election,” he said, though adding that were he to do it again, he would put “Elect,” not “Re-elect” on his signs because of the overall desire of the electorate to clean house this year. “I’m pretty happy with the decisions I’ve made. I honestly have no regrets.”

Believing he had a successful tenure, it stands to reason Mr. Teixeira may not be finished with politics in Bristol. For now, he plans to take some time off and finally attack the “honey-do” list wife Jackie has prepared. First project on the list … redoing the dining room before Christmas.

“I’m pretty excited,” Mr. Teixeira said of his upcoming time off, though he said he’d be willing to discuss any job prospects anyone may have to offer. “I’m looking forward to doing repairs around the house that have been put off. I’m really looking forward to doing more labor work. I’ve done more reading in four years here than in my whole education.”

And what about another run in the future, either for his old job, Town Council or another public office? “You never say never,” he said.

But he said he’s content to hand the reins to Mr. Contente, who he said is an experienced and capable public servant, having served in the police force for 20 years. Mr. Teixeira’s advice to his successor?

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“You have to always be cognizant of what’s going on,” he said. “Listen to residents, consider options, and don’t be too quick to pull the trigger.”