Swigert resigning as Cleveland city manager

After two and a half years leading the City of Cleveland, City Manager Scott Swigert is preparing to step down to take a new position as city manager for the City of Huntsville. Swigert has been selected as the lone finalist from a pool of 95 candidates, a distinction he says is both humbling and an opportunity too good for his family to pass up.

“It’s a great opportunity. It’s just one of those things. I am happy that we have been able to accomplish a lot of great things here in Cleveland,” Swigert said. “I’ve had the privilege of working with a great city council, great boards and commissions, and I’m thankful for the relationships I have built with people in the community. I feel I am leaving the city in a great place for the next city manager. That person will be able to come in, pick it up and move forward.”

Swigert’s decision to accept the Huntsville position was influenced not only by career growth but also by his family’s future. The move places them closer to their hometown of College Station and situates his two high school-age sons in a college town. He believes the transition is part of a larger plan.

“I believe that God brought me to Cleveland from Mont Belvieu, and once again God is leading me to Huntsville,” Swigert said. “It’s one of those situations where God kept opening the door for me, and I was ignoring it.” It wasn’t until one of his sons brought him the job notice that he realized he could no longer overlook the opportunity.

Reflecting on his time in Cleveland, Swigert said he is most proud of securing approximately $40 million in grants and forgivable loans, which will significantly improve the city’s infrastructure.

“There is such a need in our community, so to be able to achieve that was amazing. We’re going to be able to provide the services for the future development and growth that is coming to Cleveland,” he said. “We will also have more protection for our community because we have areas of town where the water lines aren’t big enough for fire hydrants. With this funding, we’re going to be able to have fire hydrants throughout the whole town. Being ready for that development and growth when it comes, and having the capacity, is going to be great as well. You’ve got to have that foundation so that you can grow, and we’ve got that settled.”

Swigert expressed confidence in the city’s leadership and staff to help his successor transition smoothly.

“We have a great staff in place. It’s going to be easy for somebody else to come in and finish projects with this staff,” he said.

Cleveland Mayor Danny Lee acknowledged that finding a replacement for Swigert will be a challenge—not just because of his work as city manager but also because of the relationships he has fostered that have benefited the city.

“The first step will be for council to pick an interim city manager, followed by hiring a search firm to go out and recruit the best candidates,” Lee said.

“He has done a tremendous job here in Cleveland. We have worked together with the grants and forgivable loans that Scott, the council, and I facilitated. That money—there’s no way, with our sales tax and property tax revenue, that we could afford to do what we need to do. We have infrastructure that’s 70 years old,” said Lee.

Lee, who has worked with six city managers in his tenure as a councilman and mayor, said Swigert’s leadership has made a lasting impact.

“I just want to also say that the past year and a half working with Scott as mayor and working with the council and employees of the city, man, it’s been probably my finest years that I’ve had,” Lee said. “Scott came in and lit the fire, and now we’re going to keep that fire burning.”

Swigert has not yet announced his official departure date, but the transition process for Cleveland’s next city manager will begin soon.