Mesa faces big transition as mayor and city manager retire
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Former Mesa Mayor John Giles (left) and City Manager Chris Brady. Photos: Courtesy of City of Mesa
Mesa, the Valley's largest suburb, is about to undergo a major shift as two of its highest-ranking and longest-serving officials say goodbye.
The big picture: Former Mayor John Giles, the elected leader of the city for more than 10 years, officially handed over the reins to newly elected Mayor Mark Freeman Tuesday.
- On Wednesday, city manager Chris Brady — who's served as the city's CEO for 19 years — announced he will retire in May.
Why it matters: During their combined years of service, Mesa added more than 50,000 residents and became one of the fastest-growing manufacturing hubs in the country while revitalizing its sleepy downtown with a light rail line and ASU campus.
Driving the news: Brady announced his intent to retire Wednesday in a letter to city employees.
- He told Axios Phoenix that after nearly two decades, "it was time" — for the city, and him personally, to make a change. He'll become a mission leader for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
- Brady said he coordinated his departure to align with the end of Giles' term to provide a smooth transition for the new mayor and city manager to work together.
Context: Mesa, like all Arizona cities, operates under a council-manager style of government, where the mayor and council direct policy, but the city manager carries out day-to-day operations.
Flashback: When Brady arrived in 2006, he said Mesa was in a financial tight spot because of an over-reliance on sales tax to fund its growth. But his bigger challenge came in convincing the city it could — and should — be more than just a suburb of Phoenix.
- He recalled that in the days after he interviewed for the position, city leaders told the local newspaper Mesa wouldn't join Phoenix, Scottsdale and Tempe in competing for a new Google facility because the area "wasn't ready for something like that."
- "I said then, 'When I'm city manager we're always gonna get in the game. We can play with the big boys,'" Brady told us.
Catch up quick: Brady credited former mayors Scott Smith and Giles for promoting the new "big city" Mesa mentality.
- That led to a major employment center around Mesa Gateway Airport, with global companies like Boeing, Meta and Apple building facilities there.
- And in downtown Mesa, hundreds of new apartment units have opened since 2020 after nearly three decades without a single residential building permit issued in the area.
Zoom in: Giles, a self-described "McCain Republican," will likely be most remembered for crossing the aisle to work with Democrats locally and nationally.
- He said two of his proudest achievements were the passage of a nondiscrimination ordinance and climate action plan — two tricky issues in a traditionally conservative city.
What's next: Both Brady and Giles said they're confident Freeman and the city council will continue Mesa's momentum and bring more quality developments and employers to the city.
The bottom line: "I think the great thing about cities is they're never done," Giles said. "We're all building on what came before us."