The now former city manager of Two Rivers is looking back at his career in the Cool City.
Greg Buckley is retiring after 30 years at the helm, a long time considered that most city managers or administrators stick around about seven to ten years on average.
It was a long road to get to Two Rivers for the Maine native.
Buckley says he grew up in the northern part of the state and went to town meetings as a kid.
He tells SeehaferNews.com that seeing the process of local government got him interested in getting into the job.
After getting through high school, he went to college.
“I attended the University of Maine, about 40 miles down the road,” he explained. “There, they offered a major in public management, a program that a lot of New England town and city managers had come out of. (I) majored in public management as an undergrad. Finished up in 1980, got my degree. Immediately went on to Syracuse University in upstate New York.”
He graduated in 1981 with a focus on state and local government finance.
He would take his first job as assistant city manager in Grant Haven, Michigan, which was along the Lake Michigan shoreline.
He would later go on to Oak Park, Illinois, until 1986, before he transitioned into his first city manager job in Buchanan, Michigan.
That all came to a head in 1995, when he applied and became the city manager of Two Rivers.
Buckley said he applied for the job because he’d heard good things about Wisconsin’s city government.
“I’ve always viewed Wisconsin as a good government state,” he noted. “My wife and I were interested in being in a community on or near Lake Michigan. I liked the size of the community, the sense of place, the sense of history. So, it just seemed to be a good fit.”
Buckley admitted he didn’t think he’d stay city manager for 30 years, but the community grew on him, and he liked the challenge.
“Infrastructure investment projects to economic development opportunities,” he described. “Obviously, we’ve had economic challenges along the way. Loss of some of those large legacy employers, most notably Hamilton.”
The now former city manager has seen a lot done around the community in his time.
He says he’s proud of a lot of projects, but really appreciates the work done for the Mariners Trail.
He told us, “As a visible symbol of the opportunities for outdoor recreation, getting up close to the water literally, that the trail presents.”
Buckley also brought up work done to replace lead service lines, the Central Park West remodel, and the building of the Lester Public Library.
While a lot was done, there is always more to be done in any community.
Buckley says he’d like to see more market-rate housing within the downtown area.
“We’ve had a couple of development proposals that were pretty exciting and ultimately didn’t pan out,” he stated. “Like every city, we need more housing. We know that construction costs and the affordability of single-family housing are a huge issue everywhere right now. But, clearly, housing remains a need.”
His officially last day on the job will be next Friday (August 15th).
For now, he is working with new City Manager Kyle Kordell as he is transitioning into his new job.
Kordell was sworn in during the council’s August 4th meeting after he was picked by the council earlier this year.
