Amazon has recruited the city of Mesa’s No. 2 official, Assistant Manager John Pombier, to serve as senior manager for community affairs in the Phoenix area.
After 19 years with the city, Pombier served his last day on the seventh floor of Mesa City Plaza on July 21.
The city promoted Deputy City Manager Scott Butler to take over as assistant manager and will conduct a hiring process for Butler’s old job.
Pombier oversaw several city departments, including police and fire, where he developed good working relationships with Mesa’s public safety leaders.
His legacy includes maintaining strong relationships with public safety leaders amid waves of national controversy surrounding policing, and launching innovative programs like the city’s initiative to deploy non-police mental health teams in response to select crisis calls.
Mental health response teams operated by partner Solari Crisis and Human Services and co-located with Mesa police went live this summer.
Through it all, Assistant Chief of Police Ed Wessing said, Pombier asked tough questions while maintaining the trust of public safety leadership.
“I always knew where I stood with Mr. Pombier,” Wessing said. “We always knew what his expectations were. In our world, that’s all we ever ask.”
Police and fire officials said this month that Pombier’s direct and hands-on approach would be missed.
“Whether it was dealing with a major sensitive incident or all the way down to a minor incident, I could ask John and get a direct answer, or he would go find the answer and get back to me, which, in my position, I can’t tell you the value in that.”
Fire Captain and Mesa firefighters union president Scott Figgins said that Pombier “made himself available and always welcomed questions and concerns. … He was always willing to work with us on whatever issue we may have had.”
One of the ways Pombier developed credibility with officials was his work ethic.
He started his day at 3 a.m. in order to lift weights before arriving at work between 6 and 7 a.m.
But Pombier said when he’s off work he likes to be off, valuing time with his kids and taking a break from work issues by diving into sci-fi and fantasy novels.
Pombier could frequently be seen carrying a Diet Coke throughout the day, but he said he is naturally high-energy without caffeine.
That seemed evident in city council study sessions, where Pombier usually sat to the side scanning the room, constantly interacting with other city staff in the audience, frequently cracking jokes.
“I’ve always had high energy and I have a hard time sitting still,” Pombier said. “I walk around this building. I’m rarely found in my office, and it’s worked out very good for my job because that helps you connect with the people you work with – as opposed to our cell phones and our computer screens. I like that personal interaction.”
Wessing said Pombier was good at making connections and remembering people.
He recalled how Pombier often showed up to police awards ceremonies and surprised officers with how much he knew about them.