It’s Arizona Cities and Towns Week! Help us celebrate!

Arizona Cities and Towns Week is set aside each year to recognize the services cities and towns provide, as well as honor those elected officials, staff and volunteers who serve in municipal government. This is the 16th Annual Arizona Cities and Towns Week.

We are excited to have so many of our Arizona cities and towns participating this year, including: Chino Valley, Florence, Gilbert, Litchfield Park, Peoria, Sierra Vista, Surprise, Tempe and many others!

Find out how your city or town is celebrating and participate in Arizona Cities & Towns Week by using the hashtag #AZCityWeek on social media.

Management Analyst
City of Sierra Vista

Local governments are home to hard-working employees who care passionately about the field in which they work. They inspire individuals to continue on a path of public service.

Pam Weir is one of those individuals whose passion for service has been an inspiration from a young age and continues to propel her in a public management career.

Having grown up in Scottsdale, Pam developed a passion for public service while attending Chaparral High School. She dreamt of working in government as a way to use privilege to make communities more inclusive and supportive.

Recognizing her dream, she travelled east to Northampton, Massachusetts to earn a bachelor’s degree in government from Smith College. To continue her education in public management and escape the snow, Pam moved back to Arizona to attend Arizona State University for her Master in Public Administration, where she was one of a prestigious few to become a Marvin Andrews Fellow.

Pam once again traded in a life of sunshine for a life of snow when she took a one-year management internship position in Fort Collins, Colorado. The position was a perfect introduction to full-time local government management work and she loved working for such an innovative community.

But as home often does, Arizona called Pam back and she returned to the Grand Canyon State to work for the City of Sierra Vista. While in graduate school, Pam had learned about the city organization when she shadowed the assistant city manager for a day to learn about the city’s response to the 2011 Monument Fire. The management analyst position for the city was exactly what Pam was looking for: an opportunity to gain further experience in the city manager’s office, focusing on budgeting, strategic planning, working with city council and helping operational departments to deliver outstanding services. It was an added bonus that the community offered stunning mountain views, unique community partnerships and an excellent team of professional managers.

Pam’s main role at Sierra Vista is to serve as the city’s budget officer. She manages the process by which all the department directors and city leaders work together to create a balanced proposed budget. Throughout the year, she works with city departments to analyze revenue and spending projections, develop priorities for future budget years, present process updates to the city council, and create the budget book document that is shared with the community once it has been passed. Like many individuals in small-town professional management, Pam wears many hats, as she also works on special projects ranging from community engagement to performance measurement initiatives.

And like many small-town professional managers, Pam realizes the importance of local government. Having wanted to work in public service since high school, her original aspirations led her to the federal level of government. However, after working in Washington, D.C. during college as both a Congressional intern and a policy advocate for a nonprofit agency, she felt that progress was very slow and often frustrating.

“I wanted to have a more direct impact on quality of life and issues of community safety and equity,” said Pam. “Local government management is the perfect place for me to use my skills and bring about tangible change to improve lives.”

Pam also loves the variety of the position, as in just one day she might work with public works, the library and finance. City management requires constant learning and creating new ways of doing things. Cities and towns are also collaborating with one another to share best practices and tackle complex challenges with municipalities from across the country.

“I believe that as communities, we can accomplish more together than separately, and the role of the city manager is to lead many different people and interests together toward the common goal of prosperity,” said Weir

As she continues to live out her passion and make her mark in the field of local government management, Pam will strive to ensure she’s using her skills to make a difference every day.

NerdWallet ranked Sierra Vista as one of the best small cities in the nation based on economic health, affordability and quality of life, in a study published on June 1.

Out of more than 1,300 cities with a population of less than 75,000, Sierra Vista is ranked 44, making it the top Arizona community on the list. The study ranked cities using data from the 2007 and 2013 American Community Survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau, giving equal weight to the three categories considered: affordability, economic health and quality of life.

“I’m not surprised to see our community recognized for what those of us who call it home already know—Sierra Vista is a great place to live, work, and raise a family,” Sierra Vista Mayor Rick Mueller says.

In an April, 2015 analysis, NerdWallet also ranked Sierra Vista as one of Arizona’s top 10 places for young families.

“Clearly, Sierra Vista is already on the radar,” says Assistant City Manager Mary Jacobs.

The key attributes identified by NerdWallet also surfaced in the City’s own recent community survey that is being used to develop a concise and memorable brand message.

“Sierra Vista is filling its economic development toolbox with vital elements like this research, along with the brand messaging and powerful collateral, all of which work in unison to help make our community vision a reality,” Jacobs says.

To learn more, read NerdWallet’s report at www.nerdwallet.com/blog/cities/best-small-cities-america-2015.

Arizona’s cities and towns are constantly working to ensure the safety of their citizens. To continue their focus on safety, especially for those younger citizens, many cities and towns in Arizona will be participating in the nationwide Child Passenger Safety Week.

Child Passenger Safety Week will be held September 14-20 in an effort to inform parents and caregivers of the proper safety measures that need to be taken when transporting children.

Car crashes are a leading cause of death for children ages 1-13. These incidents can many times be prevented with the proper use of car seats, booster seats and seat belts. Saturday, Sept. 14 is “Seat Check Saturday,” a national day devoted to ensuring children’s car seats are properly installed.

The Surprise Police and Fire-Medical Departments will be hosting two child safety seat clinics to provide information on the different types of child passenger safety seats and educate the public on proper installation of the seats. The city’s clinics will be held on Tuesday, Sept. 16 and Saturday, Sept. 20 from 8:30 – 11:30 a.m. at Surprise Fire Station #305. For more information, visit www.surpriseaz.gov/carseat.

Other cities and towns host regular car seat checks. The City of Chandler will be holding a car seat clinic each Saturday in September. The City of Buckeye, City of Mesa , City of Scottsdale and City of Sierra Vista are just a few others who regularly hold free car seat checks.

To find an upcoming seat check event near you, visit www.azgohs.gov or contact your local city or town.

The Sierra Vista Aquatic Center, aka “The Cove,” is a 36,500 sq ft facility that contains 11,347 sq ft of pool water surface, which equates to over 575,000 gallons of water. The Aquatic Center boasts a 0′ depth, or “beach”,’ entry and eight 25 yard lap lanes for lap and competitive swimming, and a wave machine with several wave patterns for Open Swim. Smaller children can enjoy a water play area of less than 2-feet of water where they can pretend to be pirates on the pirate ship slide.For those looking for a more relaxing time, there is also a warm water therapy pool that is always 92 to 94 degrees and complete with water jets. The diving pool includes two 1 meter diving boards and one 3 meter diving board. And just for fun, there are two enclosed tube slides that will take you on a ride inside AND outside the building! The Cove also has locker rooms for men, women, and families with small children. Lockers are available free of charge for the day, however, customers are strongly encouraged to bring a lock in order to secure their valuables. Locks are also available for purchase at the front desk. A snack bar and outdoor patio are available as well to hang out and take a break from all the fun. For more information, please visit: http://www.sierravistaaz.gov/

Smithsonian Exhibit Journey Stories

The Smithsonian Exhibit “Journey Stories” is here to stay until April 5th, and residents of Sierra Vista are loving it.

Culture influences, automobile evolution, and what has driven Americans from coast to coast are just a few of the engaging topics covered at this unique presentation, which is open Monday-Saturday, free of charge, at the city’s Henry F. Hauser Museum.

The idea that “everyone has a story” is a central theme of Journey Stories. The tales of travel to America-whether in hopes of a better life, by force, or original settlement-carry significant impact in the country’s history and formation, and the continuing diversification of its modern-day culture.

The Exhibit is a collaboration between both the Smithsonian Institution and State Humanities Councils, and is made possible by Arizona Humanities Council. It has been displayed in nearly 100 communities located in 18 different states. Nancy Krieski, the Hauser Museum curator, was quite instrumental in pulling together the countless events and activities complementing the exhibit on its opening day. Engaging speakers, a variety educational entertainment, and local storytelling were among a lengthy list of other complementary attractions residents enjoyed on February 22. Krieski expressed gratitude and appreciation of volunteers and donors that made a memorable opening day possible.

Those who missed the excitement from the February exhibit opening needn’t worry, as there are a variety of complementary events scheduled until the end of March. Aviation & Military Enthusiasts will love the presentation of Douglas Army Air Field, previously “one of Arizona’s largest and most important training bases.” Railroad buffs will appreciate the upcoming “tales and truths” session about railroads in Cochise County, set to take place on March 15. A tour and presentation of the unique Camp Naco historic site will happen on March 29, and a delightful “Children’s Music Maker” workshop is scheduled for March 30.

For more information, call the Museum at 439.2306 or visit www.SierraVistaAZ.gov.