San Diego CityBeat reporter Dave Maass is leaving after three years with the paper to join the San Francisco-based Electronic Frontier Foundation. Editor David Rolland writes:

Lots of San Diegans have wanted Dave to Shut! Up!—mostly those who find themselves in his argumentative crosshairs on Twitter. He certainly has a way about him. It’s all part of the package, and on balance, Dave, despite his unique ability to burrow under the skin, is the most organized and focused investigator and one of the most creative and talented writers I’ve ever worked with. In my view, he’s the best reporter in San Diego, but he pairs that skill with a knack for generating the kinds of irreverent ideas that alternative weeklies need to stay fresh …

That “unique ability to burrow under the skin” was duly noted by the San Diego City Council, which declared “Dave Maass Day” on February 13, 2013 — his last day with CityBeat.

The proclamation (included below) credits Maass with being “personally responsible for no less than three staffers in the City Clerk’s office hired to handle his endless Public Records Act Requests on important City matters such as ‘all email complaints regarding District 6 staffer Matt Donnellan’s hair.'”