World government leaders converge on Phoenix
Oct 8, 2012, 7:35 AM | Updated: Oct 9, 2012, 9:06 am
A meeting of minds from around the globe have gathered in downtown Phoenix for the week.
The 98th Annual Conference of the International City/County Management Association, is being held at the Phoenix Convention Center.
Nearly 3,000 key decision makers are attending, Phoenix city manager David Cavazos said.
“This is a conference for all of the city managers in the country and it’s international in scope,” Cavazos said. “We have people from Holland, Mexico, Denmark, Uganda, and other places in the world.”
Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton said the city can learn a lot from cities in other parts of the world.
“There will be a lot of discussion on budget and finance. Every governmental entity across the world is dealing with difficult budget situations,” Stanton said.
“And then just managing through tumultuous times.”
It took years to plan the weeklong event, according to Cavazos.
“We’ve had about a 20-member committee that’s been planning this. We’ve done everything possible to make sure everyone has a good experience,” Cavazos said.
“We’ve had help from event planners and the International City Managers Association in Washington D.C.”
The conference will run until Wednesday. It’s been more than two decades since Phoenix last hosted the event.