Former Cedar Rapids City Council member Chuck Swore dies

CEDAR RAPIDS — Chuck Swore will be remembered as a man who loved the city of Cedar Rapids and was always looking for new ideas to improve the lives of its residents.

Swore, who died Wednesday at age 79, spent six years on the Cedar Rapids City Council. He proposed and supported a variety of city projects, including the purchasing and renovation of the Cedar Rapids downtown convention center.

“He was a tremendous idea person,” Cedar Rapids City Manager Jeff Pomeranz said. “He always had new projects and new ways that the city could improve the services that we deliver. He had a lot of friends throughout the community, and he was well liked and well respected.

“He was definitely a person that made a significant positive impact on the community.”

Swore joined the council in 2005 and served for two years before being voted out in 2007. He successfully ran for an open seat on the council in 2009, and served until 2013, when he was voted out at the age of 70.

"As corny as it sounds, I enjoy serving on the council," Swore told The Gazette during his re-election campaign in 2013. "I enjoy being part of that decision-making process. And I've certainly enjoyed being a small part in what I feel the council has accomplished in the last four years. We've done some very aggressive, progressive things."

Before joining the council, Swore was the vice president and general manager at Acme Electric Co. and ran his own one-man consulting business while he was on the council.

He was chairman of the city's Five Seasons Commission for many years and served on the City Planning Commission.

“He was a very good person who cared deeply and loved Cedar Rapids. He was always an advocate for Cedar Rapids,” Pomeranz said.

Ron Corbett, who was Cedar Rapids mayor from 2010 to 2018, said he was always impressed with how straightforward Swore was and that he wasn’t afraid to speak his mind.

“He was always a strong advocate for moving Cedar Rapids forward. He was never afraid to talk about any ideas,” Corbett said. “People may not have always agreed with him on the issues, but at least they appreciated the fact that he was always an advocate for Cedar Rapids.”

Corbett worked with Swore during the time when Cedar Rapids was still rebuilding after the 2008 flood, and the two became good friends, even though they didn’t always agree on political issues.

Corbett said he had visited Swore on Monday and was surprised to hear about Swore’s death a couple of days later.

Current Cedar Rapids Mayor Tiffany O’Donnell said that even though she never worked with Swore on the council, she knew him through her previous job as a television reporter, and she was grateful to consider him a colleague and a friend.

“Chuck was a servant leader, advocating for projects with or without a title of City Council member,” she said in a statement sent to The Gazette. “He was passionate about his city, its people and its future up until his last days. What a rich and wonderful legacy he leaves.

“We are a better city because he was here. My thoughts and prayers for peace are with Chuck and his family.”

Swore and his wife, Carol, had four children and many grandchildren. His family has not yet released details about services, but his daughter, Trisha Young, said in a Facebook post the funeral will likely be held on Monday.

Comments: (319) 398-8328; emily.andersen@thegazette.com