Iowa City Downtown District to hire ‘nighttime mayor’

IOWA CITY - Jim Throgmorton won't be the only mayor in Iowa City much longer.

The Iowa City Downtown District announced its intentions Friday to hire a 'nighttime mayor” to work with businesses and promote the city's after-hours economy. Nancy Bird, executive director of the Downtown District, said the person hired for role is expected to work sometime between 7 p.m. and 3 a.m. and serve as a 'walking concierge.”

'The downtown is reinvented each night by the programming that's happening,” said Katie Roche, a member of the Downtown District's board of directors and development director at the Englert Theatre. 'That person will have an idea of the scope of the events that are happening.”

Bird said the idea for a nighttime mayor came from cities in Europe where similar roles have been created. The initiative, in part, is meant to improve opinions of downtown, what Roche called a 'hangover, pun intended,” from before the city passed a 21-only ordinance with the hopes of fighting a party reputation.

'I thought it was a really great idea,” Roche said. 'I actually heard about this kind of activity in some European cities and thought that it was a really cool way to sort of shape and enhance the nighttime culture for really active cityscape.”

Bird said the nighttime mayor will help the downtown stay true to music, theater and other cultural venues, such as the new University of Iowa's Voxman School of Music. Additionally, Bird said she expects the person who lands the job to help enhance and share events that already exist in the downtown district.

'We're a cultural destination and we want to build on that and really celebrate it in a way that's authentic to Iowa City. We're an out-of-the box type of city,” Bird said via email.

The application deadline for the position is March 27, and officials hope to have someone in place by April. Bird said she expects a steering committee to vet candidates and for them to go through forums, similar to what a real mayoral candidate might go through.

'The No. 1 thing they'll have to have is really strong interpersonal communication skills,” Bird said.

Bird said the district also supports diversity so officials are encouraging those 'from minorities and any candidate with an uplifting and energetic perspective” to apply for the position, according to the district's news release.

Bird said it has yet to be determined whether the position will be full or part time.

Applications must include a resume and a 500-word biography and be submitted to nightmayor@downtowniowacity.com.

l Comments: (319) 339-3172; maddy.arnold@thegazette.com