Eric Swanson, a municipal administrator and National Guard colonel, interviewed with the Sioux City Council as a finalist for Sioux City’s next city manager, saying he would spend his first 90 days meeting community stakeholders, assessing the city’s finances and supporting workforce housing efforts.

Swanson, who has served as city manager in several smaller cities and described recent experience leading wildfire recovery efforts, told council members he would prioritize getting “out in the community, meeting some of the key stakeholders” and quickly taking stock of the city’s fiscal condition. “The best days for Sioux City are ahead,” Swanson said.

Swanson described a background in economic and community development, grant writing and infrastructure projects. He told the panel he had overseen annexation projects (citing 600 acres of annexation in one post) and had led recovery and rebuilding after a wildfire that he said affected about 25% of the community he currently serves. He also described downtown revitalization projects in past cities, including a mixed-use food hall concept he called the Foodery, which he said began with five kitchens and acted as an anchor for further development.

Council members asked a range of questions. Councilmember Matthew asked why Swanson was attracted to Sioux City; Swanson replied that he saw opportunity and brought experience securing state and federal appropriations. Councilmember Alex asked what Swanson would accomplish in the first 90 days; Swanson repeated that he would focus on community outreach, meeting department directors and assessing the city’s finances. “Leadership doesn’t happen behind closed doors,” he said.

On homelessness, Swanson said he had used a combined approach in past cities: dedicated patrols or response teams that link enforcement with social-services referrals, and efforts to concentrate shelter or bed space while pairing enforcement with treatment and transition plans. He said such programs were resource-intensive and often require multi-year support.

Council members asked about labor relations; Swanson said his previous cities had collective bargaining and that he had experience managing multiple bargaining units and overseeing negotiations without being the sole negotiator, leaving direct bargaining to staff while making final decisions.

Swanson discussed regional economic development and workforce housing, saying retaining and attracting workers and creating “employment lands” were important to regional competitiveness. He described experience working with regional planning processes and with private developers — citing work that helped attract a Costco-sized project in a prior community by coordinating annexation, infrastructure and large-parcel availability.

City staff introduced a public-question segment moderated by Mark Peterson, recruiting consultant with MGT. Peterson read pre-submitted questions from residents. Swanson answered inquiries about weed control, homelessness, tax credits and downtown character, reiterating that many problems require multi-agency, data-driven responses and long-term funding.

The session closed with a procedural motion to adjourn. The council recorded a unanimous vote to adjourn.

The council did not take a hiring vote during the public session; members repeatedly emphasized that Swanson (if hired) should invest time building internal trust with department directors and cultivating relationships with external stakeholders such as the Chamber and local community groups.

The council said it will follow its established selection process and notify candidates of next steps.