Publications
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Rick Cole has been City Manager of Ventura since 2004. He was recently honored by Governing Magazine as one of their nine "2006 Public Officials of the Year," the only City Manager in the nation to earn that distinction. Governing cited his "intense focus on the details that add up to a vital city." Cole has focused on four key priorities, the ABCS of Ventura government: Accountable government; Balanced budget, Civic Engagement and Smart Growth.
Called "one of Southern California's most visionary planning thinkers" by the Los Angeles Times, he previously served six years as City Manager of Azusa, California. Under Cole's leadership, Azusa was described as the "most improved city in the San Gabriel Valley" by the San Gabriel Valley Tribune. He brings an unusual background to city management, having previously served as the Southern California Director of the Local Government Commission, Mayor of Pasadena, Executive Director of the West Hollywood Marketing Corporation and co-founder of the Pasadena Weekly newspaper.
Cole is widely cited as an urban policy expert and is a member of the Congress for New Urbanism, the Urban Land Institute and the International City/County Manager's Association.
Writings, Speeches, and Interviews
- Interview on Time Warner Cable's Local Edition, July 2011
- "Time to get real," presentation to the California Air Resources Board on a Partnership with Local Government on Climate Change Action
- "Who Takes Ownership of the City?" Race, Poverty and the Environment, June 2008
- Ventura City Manager Rick Cole Surveys Green Clout of Local Government to Transform 'The Way We Live'
- Smart Growth: The Opportunity for Managers to Lead, Public Management Magazine Cover Story
- Thinking Differently: Rick Cole Speaks at Urban Land Institute's Place Making Conference
- Dust Up: LA Times Debate on Climate Change and Land Use Policy
- Redwood City Forum: Making Great Places, Thinking Globally, Acting Locally
- California dreamin' 2020: We won't hit our greenhouse gas goals without curbing our car culture, Rick Cole, Los Angeles Times, July 23, 2007
- Text of Public Officials of the Year Acceptance Speech, Rick Cole, Washington D.C. November 15, 2006
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Video of Public Officials of the Year Acceptance Speech
Windows Media | Real Player
see the rest of the ceremony at Governing's
Archived Video Webcast - "Urban Outfitter - Helping cities thrive, not just survive", Governing Magazine, November 2006
- "Magazine honors a Ventura leader" Ventura County Star, October 31, 2006
- "Urban Design and our Civic Lives" by Rick Cole, Terrain Magazine, Summer 1998
- "Ventura city manager says great cities are built from the neighborhood up", The Planning Report, May 2005
- "Public Sector Role In Growth: Lead Or Get Out Of The Way", The Planning Report, September 2001
- "Rick Cole Offers A Realizable Smart Growth Vision", The Planning Report, January 2005
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