The hire Friday of Cathy Swanson Rivenbark as 
the new Coral Gables city manager could be the best news the City Beautiful has had in months.
The former head of the city’s Economic Development department — and mother of the Coral Gables Farmer’s Market — left the city to be assistant city manager in Hollywood. She will resign as city manager there on Monday and could start here as early as December. She has to give 45 days as per her contract, but Mayor Peter Bober has indicated he wants to work toward a speedy transition. Swanson is hoping one of her deputy city managers gets an interim post so she can leave him prepared.
“I’m a Girl Scout,” she told Ladra. “I leave things better than when I found them.”
Her homecoming comes at a tumultuous time in Coral Gables, after the abrupt resignation of the city manager and the police chief and a botched first process to find a replacement for the former.
Read related story: Coral Gables begins anew, sans Pat Salerno
But, if Swanson’s demeanor and character hasn’t changed, she is a good fit that can hit the ground running and jump hurdles over the drama.
Swanson knows the way the city works and will already be up to speed on projects and requests for proposals that were, embarrassingly enough, begun when she was still 
a top administrator at the city five years ago. The Miracle Mile Streetscape project, the RFP for the parking garages.
She knows many of the employees and who to trust and will likely know who to toss rather quickly. She is going to ignore all the chatter and stick to the business of running a city. Because she is not political.
Cathy doesn’t play favorites, she doesn’t get in the way of the commission and will actually help — what a concept — the commissioners execute policy without meddling in their dynamics and relationships with each other. And she won’t mince words. Swanson will tell them what they need to hear when she has to — whether they are going to like it or not.
Read related story: Cathy Swanson to get Gables city manager recommendation
Ladra predicted it here two weeks ago because it just seemed like a natural move, blessed by the universe. But there were detractors that raised the “million dollar mistake” — the hiring of 35 temporary workers at a cost $935,000 over the course of two years without commission approval. There are haters in Hollywood happy to see her go. This is government. There will always be.
Swanson’s explanation seems like government as usual. Department heads traditionally had the freedom to hire and pay temporary workers. When they realized they did not have the green light, someone had to take it to the commission for retroactive approval, she said. And she did it. She took the bullet for her department heads.
Three of the commissioners who were looking for a reason pounced on it to try to get rid of her and Ladra is certain that helped Swanson decide to take a small pay cut and return to the Gables.
Needless to say she’s a rock star among employees in Hollywood, who hate to see her go. But city workers in Coral Gables were… a good word is jubilant.
“Hallelujah. There is a God,” said one longtime City Hall employee who asked not to be named. “Now things will get back to normal around here.”
“These people are not going to be able to fool Cathy,” said another worker, referring to what many employees call the Salernoites — lackies left behind by the city manager to continue to do his bidding.
If nothing else, Swanson’s arrival will nix that, whether it’s reality or perception.
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