On the first and third Tuesday of every month, seven people gather in front of a crowd of residents to make decisions that will directly impact the city.
The city of Greeley operates under a council-manager government system and is governed by a home-rule charter. According to weld.gov, a home rule is a form of government that gives residents the authority to manage their own local government affairs. The charter defines the roles and purpose of the government.
A council-manager government is run by elected officials and an appointed manager who work together to set policy. They decide things such as what ordinances to pass, what laws to adopt and what priorities to set for the city. In Greeley, this includes current mayor John Gates and six elected city council members: Tommy Butler, Deb DeBoutez, Johnny Olson, Brett Payton, Melissa McDonald and Mayor Pro Tem Dale Hall. The council works with city manager Raymond Lee to serve Greeley’s residents.
City council meets on the first and third Tuesday of the month. These meetings are open to the public and allow residents to speak directly to the council regarding any concerns they have.
Council member Tommy Butler remarks on what these meetings are like for him.
“Being up there on the day is not particularly that much different than just arguing with friends for me,” Butler said.
Additionally, the council meets every second and fourth Tuesday of the month for work sessions. These meetings are open to the public as well, however, because these meetings are purely informational, public comments are not permitted.
The council also meets once a year to review and discuss the state of the city and set priorities for the next year.
The mayor is the head of the city council. City council is a group of policymakers elected by voters. They are in charge of appointing certain top positions within Greeley’s government and overseeing roles including the city manager, city attorney and municipal court judge.
“We have three direct reports as a council: the city manager, the city attorney and the municipal judge. So those are the folks that we have oversight over, and then the city manager basically does most of the other stuff,” Butler said.
The city manager is in charge of public services, manages the day-to-day operations of the city, and appoints the rest of the public service leaders within the government, including two assistant managers, the city clerk, the chief of police and the director of public works among others.
Lee describes the work he does as a manager and what the day-to-day looks like.
“Meetings, either with department heads, meetings with citizens, meetings with developers, meetings with other city leadership throughout the community,” Lee said. “Really getting inside input as it relates to my perspective on how we move things forward…or just check-ins, just to keep me aware of what's happening in the organization or in the community.”
A major part of the city manager's role is overseeing the development and improvement of the city. Development projects such as the upcoming Cascadia and Catalyst projects are a result of the efforts to improve resident life in Greeley.
“We constantly hear that our citizens are looking for more amenities in our community. More places to go, places of destination…places to go out to eat, places to shop. Really developing complete communities where people live, work, and play,” Butler said.
In a business model, the city manager is described as the CEO, and the city council acts as the chairperson. Together, they work to uplift and serve the residents of Greeley and provide the best service possible.
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