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The most important thing in Coral Gables is that she offers some hope of stability to a ship that is bobbing and lost. 
Former City Manager Pat Salerno resigned abruptly in April after Commissioner Vince Lago caught him in a lie. Salerno was omitting information on traffic accidents and presenting a misleading and outright false report to the commission. Since then, the police chief also resigned under pressure for failure to respond — or, really, even recognize — what citizens said was a crime wave. In between, the city came to a settlement about the development of the trolley station and the interim administration has been accused of acting as a Salerno stand-in, still taking orders from the old boss.
Read related story: Gables transfer stinks of political payback via Salernoites
Swanson was the first pick delivered by recruiter Bud Park after a long and botched first attempt by the other recruiter that ended up with a rescinded offer to James Beard, the CFO of Atlanta, whose foreclosures and domestic violence record became an issue. There have been claims of racism, since Beard is the first black to get that job, even if it was for a millisecond. But if that were true, why would he get the job in the first place? Ladra thinks the Gables is just a tiny bit too prude is all.
Needless to say, Swanson was fingerprinted and back grounded before being offered the $172.000-a-year job Friday. We already know she was squeaky clean, but they are never going to do that again.
There are people that say that neither Beard’s background check nor his race mattered because the commission wanted Swanson from the start. That Beard may have actually been intentionally picked because he could be discarded to start all over again with a new process. Swanson’s name had been floated the first round, but she apparently didn’t throw her hat in until after.
She told Ladra it was because the first recruiter never called her. 
“I wasn’t looking for a job,” she said. But when Park called her and asked her to meet with the commissioners and talk about the position with no pressure, she decided it was worth a look.
When she heard what the commission wanted in a city manager, she became more interested. And when she spoke to them individually, she decided that she could work there.
In fact, judging from a conversation with Ladra over the weekend, she is already working there. Asked what she was going to tackle first in her new post, Swanson didn’t hesitate. And she didn’t shut up, going on and on and on: Redevelopment of the Andalusia garages, newer technology, a greener city, and employee benefits — in healthcare, time for school events and a wellness program — that she will try to adapt from Hollywood.
“But first, I have to do a lot of listening. I have to meet with department heads and employees and residents and business leaders and listen to what they want to say,” Swanson said.
Ah, see the difference already?
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