Mayor and council introduce new city manager, Jeff Pomeranz; he sees 'incredible promise' in Cedar Rapids

CEDAR RAPIDS - Mayor Ron Corbett said this morning it was fitting to introduce the city's new city manager, Jeff Pomeranz, in the lobby of the Veterans Memorial Building, home to City Hall, where the flood-damaged building's signature Grant Wood-designed stained-glass window was being reinstalled even as he spoke.

Like the window, Corbett said, the hiring of Pomeranz - who has been city manager of the fast-growing and prosperous city of West Des Moines for 12 years – was proof that “the pieces of our community at large are being put together.”

“And our goal isn't just to put those pieces together as they were, but to put those pieces together stronger and better as Cedar Rapids positions itself for a bright future,” the mayor said.

Some 50 people from the community and City Hall, four of Corbett's eight council colleagues and about 15 representatives from the area media attended the 10 a.m. news conference.

Council members Kris Gulick, Don Karr, Chuck Swore and Justin Shields, in turn, all took to the microphone to explain why it made sense to hire Pomeranz, 52, to fill the city manager's post.

The predecessor to Pomeranz, Jim Prosser, left on April 13 as part of a “separation agreement” with the city. Allan Thoms is currently holding down the post as interim city manager.

Corbett said the vote would be 9-0 to hire Pomeranz when the council votes on Tuesday.

Gulick told the crowd that he had known Pomeranz and worked alongside him for three years as a member of the Iowa League of Cities executive board.

Gulick said Pomeranz asked “tough questions” and came up with “great ideas and creative solutions.” He called him “the consummate professional.”

“He's up to taking on these new challenges,” Gulick said.

Karr, Swore and Shields were three of the four members of the council's Personnel Committee, which headed up the search for a new city manager.

Shields credited council member Monica Vernon, chairwoman of the committee, with doing a “great job” in leading the effort to get Pomeranz to come to Cedar Rapids.

Shields said he had seen Pomeranz in action longer than Pomeranz knows, because Shields said he watched the way Pomeranz handled himself when their paths crossed in lobbying trips to the Statehouse and in meetings of the state I-JOBS Board. Pomeranz chairs the board, appointed by Gov. Chet Culver.

“I just love the way he does business,” Shields said. “I love his passion. He loves to get things done.”

With Pomeranz, the city is going to get the most done than it ever has, Karr added.

Swore said he gave Pomeranz something of a test - it related to how to bring the flood-damaged A&W business or something like it back to life in the Time Check Neighborhood – and Pomeranz had a “step-by-step” approach to how it might be done.

“His response was perfect,” Swore said.

Corbett, Vernon and most on the City Council made it clear from the start of the search for a city manager that they wanted to find someone with Iowa experience, and Tuesday morning, Corbett emphasized that about Pomeranz.

Corbett said Pomeranz “understands relationships,” and he said he understands the political environment in the state of Iowa. He said Pomeranz is “attuned” to how the Statehouse works and how the state's Congressional delegation works.

“We're going to need relationships,” the mayor said, pointing to the city's need to secure federal and state funding for a new flood-protection system.

Speaking last, Pomeranz said he saw in Cedar Rapids a new challenge and a city with “enthusiasm” and “incredible promise.”

“That really gets me excited,” he said. He said he is not one to sit back. He said he will work hard with the community and the council “to make Cedar Rapids the best it can be.”

Pomeranz said his role as chairman of the state I-JOBS Board has brought him to Cedar Rapids several times, and so he knows first hand what the impact of the June 2008 flood has been.

The city of Cedar Rapids and entities in the city have secured I-JOBS funds, many from earmarks from the Iowa Legislature. The city is competing now for a second round of I-JOBS funding from a pot of about $30 million.

Pomeranz said his two children attend the University of Iowa, which also has brought him to Cedar Rapids. He said his wife, Nancy, is as eager as he is to move to Cedar Rapids.

Corbett said the city will pay Pomeranz $225,000 a year, up from the $200,000 salary he currently receives with the city of West Des Moines.

The city paid Jim Prosser $165,000 a year, but Prosser declined to take a raise in his 44-month tenure though the City Council wanted to give him raises.

This will be Pomeranz's fourth job as city manager. His first job in Del Rio, Texas, came as a 26 year old. He said he was the youngest city manager in the nation then. He also did a stint in Port Angeles, Wash.

He was raised on Long Island, N.Y., and has a master's degree in public administration from the University of Alabama.