City Manager David Cavazos

City Manager David Cavazos believes that innovation, efficiency, creativity and diversity are at the heart of a well-run city government.

“The magic of the City of Phoenix is that it doesn’t matter who you are, the services that we count on everyday are available to everyone” says Cavazos. He is responsible for managing a $3.6 billion budget and nearly 15,000 employees. Each day he works closely with the Mayor and City Council to find ways to make Phoenix a better place to visit and live.

In 2009, the Mayor and City Council appointed Cavazos to City Manager. In his first two years, Cavazos triggered a major fiscal turnaround, resulting in a structurally balanced budget in just two years. At first, it was a difficult time as a widespread economic recession led to a $277 million budget deficit. Cavazos’ first priority was to get the city back on solid financial footing by working under the leadership of the Mayor and City Council and in partnership with employee groups and the community. He also created the Innovation and Efficiency Task Force, made up of city employees and private citizens. The task force was charged with the goal of delivering the same or even greater level of service.

During its first year, the task force was charged with finding $10 million in savings and ended up surpassing that at $25 million.  Success continued in the second phase with a savings of $40 million. Most recently in the third phase, the City Manager, Mayor and Council and the task force celebrated a savings of nearly $60 million and set a new goal to reach the $100 million mark by December 2015.

Read more about accomplishments and new goal

Since Cavazos became City Manager, several projects were completed to help revitalize and bring life to downtown Phoenix, including the two-block, multi-use entertainment and office complex CityScape and the Health Sciences Education building at the Phoenix Biomedical Campus.  The downtown Phoenix campus of Arizona State University has also seen additional development completed during Cavazos’ tenure as City Manager, and enrollments have increased substantially.

The City Manager’s commitment to the community goes beyond his day-to-day duties with the City of Phoenix. In his capacity as Chairman of the Board of Directors for Phoenix Children’s Hospital, he has helped make PCH one of the top pediatric hospitals in the nation with his involvement in the center’s $500 million expansion. Cavazos is also President of the Downtown Phoenix Sheraton Hotel Corporation. Community diversity is also a priority for the City Manager who participates in numerous scholarship programs for disadvantaged youth as well as ethnic chambers of commerce.

Prior to being appointed City Manager, Cavazos spent more than three years as a Deputy City Manager, working on a number of diverse and important city issues including development of the $250 million Arizona State University downtown campus, water strategy, neighborhood revitalization, urban planning, and information technology. He played key roles in improving the city’s successful adaptive reuse program, establishing a customer advocacy office to assist small businesses throughout the city, simplifying the building plan-review process and enhancing the impact fee program.

Cavazos has a Master of Science degree in Management and Public Policy from Carnegie Mellon University. A Chicago native, he joined the City of Phoenix in 1987 as a member of the nationally recognized Phoenix Management Intern Program. After completing the program, he worked in the Economic Development Department where he helped expand the city’s economic base by aiding new business development and encouraging existing businesses to grow and expand. Later, he held a variety of key positions with the Aviation Department, including acting director, at a time when Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport experienced significant growth.

David Cavazos is excited about Phoenix’s accomplishments and is looking forward to what’s ahead. “Innovative ideas and sound financial management are at the heart of what we do here at the City of Phoenix, and we will continue to find new ideas and solutions that make this city a great place to live.”

City Manager's Commitment to Budget Transparency
 

View a Video of the City's Celebration of $59 Million in Innovation and Efficiency Savings

View a Video of the City Manager Reading to Children at the Bret Tarver Learning Center

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