CEDAR HILL – Cedar Hill’s City Manager Greg Porter will retire next month.
His official last day will be July 31, 2024.
Porter skyrocketed over his 37-year Cedar Hill career from intern to City Manager at a city he said has seen a lot of change since he began working there in January 1987.
Originally from Irving, Porter has seen some changes, including a Cedar Hill that might be unrecognizable to some since it had a population of 20,000 back then and is now 50,000.
When asked to name his wins while in Cedar Hill, he said that is not easy.
“Wins are like children. It’s tough to pick a favorite,” he explained. “All of the things I’ve accomplished in Cedar Hill have been community efforts. Early on, the community wanted a great park system with safe and healthy places where kids could play and build community. Then, it evolved to wanting an indoor place for activities, so we built the Alan E. Sims Recreation Center. In the early 2000s, the community wanted to have high-quality retail, restaurants, and services right here at home, so we developed a retail product that became a destination for the region. I think the community’s biggest win is knowing itself and what a distinctive Cedar Hill is and can be.”
As Cedar Hill continued to grow, the city leaders also wanted to remember what it had always been – and they have kept that intact.
“There has been a lot of change over the last 37 years, but I love that there are so many things that haven’t changed: the character of the place, its natural beauty, and the way that Cedar Hill is still a community place,” Porter said. “It is more than two times bigger than when I first started, but the people here still treat their neighbors like family. It is still a friendly place.”
Porter took over as City Manager in January 2015 when former City Manager Alan Sims retired. At that time, he was the city’s Deputy City Manager. He had served his entire 37-year career with Cedar Hill, starting out as a part-time intern researching ordinances and laying asphalt in 1987.
He said that even after he became City Manager, he fondly remembered his time working with Sims.
“I enjoyed greatly and miss working with Alan through a very impactful and consequential time for the city. Those were very fun and busy days,” he said.
Porter has often quipped that he’s held every job in the city, except Fire Chief, serving in roles of municipal public service from the ground up, including planning, parks and recreation, human resources, economic development, public safety, animal control, emergency management, utilities, and public works.
Holding a bachelor’s degree in political science from Southern Methodist University, the outgoing city manager is an ICMA-credentialed manager and a 2012 graduate of ICMA’s Senior Executive Institute at the Weldon School of Public Service at the University of Virginia. He has served his city well and will be missed.
Mayor Stephen Mason said, “I am incredibly grateful to Mr. Porter and his family for their dedicated service for the last 37 years,” said Mayor Stephen Mason. “He has left a lasting mark on Cedar Hill through his professional achievements and heart for the community. I am proud to have served alongside him as a mayor and friend.”
He will still be around, though.
He said about his retirement, “I plan to be a good citizen and to be a good cheerleader for the place and people that I appreciate and owe so much to. I’m not sure exactly what that looks like yet.”
