The actual SMART press release, which is so full of spin that one really does wonder what they're hiding:

> For Immediate Release: Jan. 21, 2011 Contact: Chris Coursey,
> 707-521-0716
>
> General Manager to Leave SMART

> Lillian Hames, who helped transform SMART from a good idea into a
> transportation reality, announced today that she will be leaving the
> agency after nearly a decade as its General Manager. Ms. Hames
> informed the Board of Directors of her decision, which is effective
> immediately. David Heath, the District’s Director of Finance and
> Administration, will serve as Interim General Manager until a
> permanent replacement is hired. Ms. Hames was a transportation
> consultant when she came to work as project director for what was
> then known as the SMART Commission in 2001. She was the district’s
> only employee for several years, shepherding a nascent idea to use
> the publically owned Northwestern Pacific Railroad right-of-way for a
> modern commuter train and bicycle-pedestrian pathway that would offer
> an alternative to the congestion of Highway 101. After SMART became a
> special district created by Assembly Bill 2224 in 2003, she oversaw
> the initial conceptual design of the project and the development of
> the 2006 Final Environmental Impact Report. In 2008, nearly 70
> percent of Marin and Sonoma County voters approved Measure Q, a
> quarter-cent sales tax to provide major funding for the SMART train
> and pathway project. The Women’s Transportation Seminar named Ms.
> Hames its “Woman of the Year” for 2008. Since then Ms. Hames has
> overseen the transformation of the agency from a relatively small
> planning operation to one that is preparing to begin construction
> this year on the largest single public project ever undertaken in the
> North Bay. In 2010, under her direction, the agency completed
> Advanced Conceptual Engineering of the project and successfully
> negotiated a contract for the manufacture of rail vehicles with
> Sumitomo Corp. of America. The vehicle contract came in more than $20
> million under budget. Ms. Hames said that after a decade of work on
> SMART, and with the project poised to enter the construction phase,
> it is a good time for her to pursue new opportunities. SMART
> Chairwoman Valerie Brown said she and other members of the Board
> offered Ms. Hames heartfelt thanks for her years of service and
> dedication to the project, and wish her well in her future endeavors.