New city manager ready to begin
IMPERIAL — Stefan Thomas Chatwin is excited to move to the Imperial Valley to take the helm as the new city manager here starting Monday.
The 1993 Brigham Young University graduate is coming from Hayden, Chatwin Idaho, which has a population of about 13,300 to Imperial with a population of about 14,800 — one small city to another.
“That’s one of the things I really like about Imperial. I like that small-town feel, I like working in a community where you know the people that are there,” said Chatwin. “Your interactions with people are more personal. I love being part of all the events in the community, things that are going, whether it’s in the city or things that are not city-sponsored … it’s just a great feel.”
He brings plenty experience as well.
Upon receiving his bachelor’s degree in international relations from BYU, he was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the United States Air Force, serving for six years in various parts of the country and abroad, stated a press release from the city of Imperial.
In 1999, Chatwin separated from the Air Force and spent the next two years in the library software and solutions industry developing business strategies and building strategic partnerships.
He then served as the director of Community Services for the city of Ogden, Utah, then to Santaquin, Utah, as its city manager for the next 4 1/2 years before being the city administrator in Hayden for seven years.
Former City Manager Marlene Best left the city at the end of March, when she accepted the same position with the city of Santee. The city’s Planning and Development Director Jorge Galvan has been serving as the interim city manager since Best departed.
The Imperial council selected Chatwin during a regular meeting Sept. 21.
Chatwin, as he stated, will start “drinking from the fire hose” as he looks to catch up on the projects the city is currently working on. One of those is a multi-million dollar equestrian/sports complex the city hopes to have complete in 2020. It’s an ambitious project that will bring plenty of regional notoriety to the small city and Chatwin believes he has the experience to help make it happen.
“I’ve been involved in a lot of similar kinds of things,” he said. “A lot of stuff that was very lean-forward, thinking outside of the box.”
He stressed one of the things he feels is important in all projects is outreach and transparency.
“There’s a lot of community involvement when you’re doing those kinds of things and ensuring that the community is aware,” Chatwin said. “A lot of outreach and transparency is very important when working on these kinds of projects.”