Happy anniversary, John Nachbar.
Six years ago this morning, the Shawnee, KS, native launched what would become the longest tenure for a city manager in the colorful history of Culver City.
Alright, it only was a decade ago that the Charter Review Committee agreed to replace the less executive-centric chief administrative officer form of government with a reasonably strong – but not all-powerful –city manager. Voters will decide on Nov. 8 whether Mr. Nachbar will be granted the traditional full authority of city managers elsewhere by transferring control over the police and fire chiefs from the City Council to Mr. Nachbar.
Six years along, the 60-year-old Mr. Nachbar looks and acts exactly as he did on Aug. 16, 2010 when he was hired away from his native Kansas City after 10 years as city manager of upscale Overland Park.
Stoic. Unassuming. Workmanlike.
Even if you two are the only persons in the room, you must ask whether Mr. Nachbar is present. He is that soft-shoe.
He is productive, as he should be at $234,000 a year, modest, and decidedly tough when he needs to be. Ask those present or now gone.
Even though he is not known for his singing voice, observers say Mr. Nachbar has perfect pitch. With admirable precision, he understands his role in the City Hall power structure.
He performs his city manager duties at the pleasure of the public-conscious City Council.
Like the technical second banana, one of his primary responsibilities is not to outshine or upstage the City Council.
Mr. Nachbar has mastered that role about as well as Mike Angelo painted classic scenes.
If you were building a city manager, Mr. Nachbar could be the model without disturbing a hair on his head or a roll of his sox.
An Objective Assessment
Hardly anyone in Culver City has known Mr. Nachbar as well as recently term-limited former Councilman Andy Weissman.
“I was on the Council that selected John as city manager, and I can’t say enough good things about him,” Mr. Weissman said.
“John stepped in as our city manager in the middle of a particularly rough patch for us.
“We had burned through three city managers in two years. The economy had tanked. The city was looking at an $8 million dollar structural deficit.
“Employees were nervous about their future with the city, and then, piling on, the state decided that would be a good time to eliminate Redevelopment Agencies,” Mr. Weissman said.
The city manager’s main gifts?
“John’s leadership, his steady hand, his calm and professional approach to problem-solving, his ability to drill down to recognize what needs to be done and then deliver.
“John helped avoid what could have been a municipal catastrophe, and instead has allowed the community to flourish.
“The City Council sets policy,” said Mr. Weissman, “but the city manager implements the policies.
“The city manager is responsible for overseeing day-to-day operations of the city. John does that conscientiously, with great care and concern for the community. We could not ask for a better city manager.”