Chaska’s Pokorney put down roots

On Monday, after almost a quarter of a century at the same job, Dave Pokorney left his job as Chaska's city administrator.

Citing no reasons other than it was time and the city is in fine shape, Pokorney resigned, months after being named by his peers as the state's city administrator of the year.

Pokorney, the longest-serving city administrator in the west metro area, leaves some big shoes to fill.

He oversaw the transformation of the Carver County community from a town of about 8,000 residents into one of the best small towns in the country, even at triple the population.

Among his career highlights, he said, was erecting a new City Hall downtown, installing a $45 million flood control project and building the Chaska Town Course, rated one of the best community golf courses in the country.

Before starting his new career as a consultant, he sat down to talk about his life, his career, Aug. 4 and former President Richard Nixon:

Q What's the significance of retiring on Aug. 4?

A That was a very conscious decision. Aug. 4 [was] 24 years to the day that I first came here. I don't know if 24 years was a magic number but 24 years in one place is a long time for any city manager.

Q How long did you expect to be here?

A The average life expectancy of a city manager is five to eight years... I never thought I would last, that I would work out my career in Chaska. In our profession the way that you move up is you have to move on to other cities. Promotions are curved through relocation.

Q When you started your career did you have a certain city, a certain size in mind?

A I knew I wanted to be in Minnesota. ... I knew I didn't want to work at the largest cities in Minnesota. ... What happened is I found the job grew when I was here. It went from a community of 8,000 to 25,000. We built community centers and golf courses ... and I could grow in the job without having to go through the relocation process.

Q How did you decide to get into public administration? Is this an accidental career?

A No. I grew up in a small town, Hibbing, that had really a strong sense of community. My dad was active in a lot of volunteer things, the planning commission. He never ran for office but he was active in things and I enjoyed that piece, being involved in the community.

Q Did you enjoy the politics? Do you enjoy politics?

A I never enjoyed the politics of it. Although I never found that there is a lot of politics at the local level the way there is at the state or national or even county level. ... I couldn't even tell you what the political persuasion[s] of our council members [are].

Q How old were you when you decided "this is what I want to do"?

A I knew once I got to graduate school [at the University of Pittsburgh] I was going to do something in the government sector.

Q You also got an economics degree from St. Thomas University in 1974. How did you decide on economics?

A It really fit into my government career. I think understanding the economics of decisions really affects, in a positive way, those decisions.

Q 1974 was a time of gas lines, oil embargoes and Nixon. How much did that play into your decision to go into government or economics?

A Watching Nixon really made me convinced I didn't want to be at the federal level. So it narrowed up my search.

Q You are serving at the whim of others. Is that ever something you think of?

A Absolutely. But that's at the core of the city management concept. The City Council has the authority to terminate you at will, even if they just don't like you. Without that authority ... the city management form of government doesn't work.

Q Really, I would think you'd want a guaranteed three-year contract? Does that undermine you at all?

A No. ... I don't think that was a limiting factor. I think that's something city managers are always aware of. You know you have to do what the majority of the City Council wants you to do. It's what gives them the ability to govern.

Q Why did you stay? Was it your family?

A That was a big part of it. My family really liked living here. I had opportunities to leave and I'd share it with my family. One time they said, 'Dad, we think you should do it but we're not leaving. We'll visit you on weekends.'

Q How was your job on them?

A I think it gave them a great sense of community. That is one of disadvantages of this profession, having to uproot your family so often. Luckily I didn't have to do that.

Q How did it affect them?

A I hope what it did was give my kids a sense of home, that they always have someplace to go back to. Although I think it was tough sometimes growing up. The police all knew my kids. When they did something I often found out about it before they did. And when there were tough issues they'd read about their dad in the paper and he was being criticized for something.

Q What were some of the more difficult issues?

A The toughest issues usually related to development, to some change in land use. One was deciding where we were going to locate City Hall.

Q Why was that?

A A citizens committee came back and said it should be built outside of downtown. ... The council said if our mission is to be a small town then all small towns have their City Hall downtown. We had to buy land and displace a lot of businesses and residents. That's where the controversy came in.

Q Of all the projects you've done, is there one that stands out?

A I know the one that was most fun was building a golf course ... it was recently ranked as one of the 25 best public courses, right up there with Torrey Pines and Bethpage. ... What I'm most proud of is not a project but the fact that Chaska today is a better small town than when I started. It's a better community, the quality of life is better. We have preserved and even enhanced the values that go with living in a small town.

Heron Marquez Estrada • 612-673-4280