Cathy Swanson to get Gables city manager recommendation

It’s homecoming season in the high school world and it looks like Coral Gables is getting ready to crown Cathy Swanson-Rivenbark their own queen.

Swanson — who was the city’s economic development director before leaving to Hollywood, where she is now manager — was at Human Resources Monday to be fingerprinted, the only one of five candidates whose name has been submitted for a background check by recruiter Bud Park.

Park was given 60 days to find a suitable permanent replacement for former Manager Pat Salerno from City Hall. He will recommend one person to the commission — and it looks like that is going to be Swanson-Rivenbark — because Ladra is pretty sure she’ll ace the background check. And she is the only person he has submitted to be backgrounded.

Salerno resigned in April when he was questioned about false information he provided regarding an increase in accidents on Ponce de Leon Boulevard that might be the result of palm trees planted by the city that blocked drivers’ vision at some intersections. A first search netted five candidates, from which Atlanta Chief Financial Officer James Beard was chosen and offered the job. Then a background check found he had bankruptcies and a domestic violence incident, including a restraining order. Beard said the police report was bogus and ultimately dismissed. But that kinda thing doesn’t go over well in the Gables.

A second round was started in September by a different recruiter, and Park aimed to keep the names of candidates secret this time but failed when Political Cortadito posted five finalist candidates last week. Two of those withdrew from the contest. But Swanson-Rivenbark was among those who were still in consideration.

Commissioners met with the candidates over the weekend and ranked them in order of preference, one source said. They haven’t met to pick someone publicly, but it could be that three or more of them ranked Swanson high, or even chose her for the No. 1, which would give Park the green light to recommend her.

Swanson became Hollywood’s city manager in 2012. She supervises 1,300 full-time and 200 part-time employees, and oversees a combined budget of $462 million. Since joining the city of Hollywood as assistant city manager in 2009, Swanson has overseen citywide redevelopment activities and supervised six departments. Her projects included:

The Johnson Street Redevelopment (commonly known as the Margaritaville Hollywood Beach Resort)
Converting an old fire station into a downtown Hollywood campus for Barry University’s College of Health Sciences
Merging the Beach and Downtown CRA offices into a unified agency
Expanding the role of the Department of Community Development from low-income housing to citywide neighborhood transformation and economic development

She would certainly be a breath of fresh air. Swanson is a consummate professional who cannot be pressured politically and will not waste time in airing out the Salerno stench at City Hall.

Ladra, for one, can’t wait until she starts. Welcome home, Cathy.

Cathy Swanson-Rivenbark, Coral Gables, Pat Salerno

Cathy Swanson to get Gables city manager recommendation added by Ladra on October 27, 2014
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