The Finnie Legacy

He doesn't have to. Finnie's fingerprints are on almost every major advance in Springfield in the last 15-plus years.

Jordan Valley Park. Vision 20/20. Downtown revitalization. Jordan Valley Innovation Center. Hammons Field. Partnership Industrial Center and PIC West.

Finnie has been involved with each of these milestones. But you won't hear him say it, even as he prepares for his retirement April 24.

“What I admire about him, and what I've learned from him, is he never takes credit for anything,” said Great Southern Bank's Brian Fogle, who worked with Finnie on the committee to plan Vision 20/20, an instrumental citizen-directed planning initiative. “He's never out front on things - he's quietly in the background making sure we follow through, do what we're supposed to. He's so much in the background that people wouldn't know he did much.”

There's no hiding the numbers, though.

The city's annual budget has grown 228 percent to $238.3 million since he started in 1990, and city employment rolls have grown 25 percent to more than 1,600 employees.

Finnie also left a lasting impression in Charlotte, N.C., where he worked for 13 years before taking the Springfield job.

“I'm a really big fan of Tom Finnie,” said Pamela Syfert, Charlotte's city manager, who worked closely with Finnie for years. She was assistant budget director when Finnie came on as budget director in 1977 and followed in his footsteps through three promotions to deputy city manager, Finnie's role when he left Charlotte for Springfield in 1990.

“Everybody knew he was going to go far. A lot of people here remember Tom and still ask about him and wish him well,” she added. “One of the (city) council members at the time (Finnie was deputy city manager) ran into me at the grocery store the other day, and out of the blue she said, 'How is Tom? Has he been back in town?' He's absolutely a terrific person to work with and work for.”

Staying centered

Perhaps the crown jewel of Finnie's Springfield tenure is the revitalization of downtown and the center city area.

That rejuvenation can be attributed in part to Finnie's and the city's willingness to partner with private developers. Those developers have put $250 million into center city since 1997, according to Urban Districts Alliance research.

Downtown developer and architect Dan Scott has taken advantage of city-facilitated government funding for several projects, including 400 Place at Walnut and Jefferson.

He said the downtown renaissance would not have been possible without help from the city.

“These rehabilitation projects are much more expensive than to go out in a cornfield and build a new building, so we need these programs to make those financially feasible,” Scott said. “I don't think we could have done what we've done downtown without those partnerships. They're essential.”

Those revitalization efforts, including the development of Jordan Valley Park and Hammons Field, also have been dependent on programs such as the Springfield Finance and Development Corp., another idea brought to fruition under Finnie's watch. The corporation has made $1.3 million worth of loans for 26 different projects since 1998.

Dan Chilton, owner of Moxie Cinema, used a $25,000 SFDC loan to help finance the remodel of his movie house in early 2005.

“Without the SFDC, we definitely wouldn't be here today,” Chilton said.

With downtown growing more vibrant and eclectic by the day, the man taking over Finnie's City Hall office chalks it up to the risk-taking nature of his predecessor.

“Normally (city managers) want to be a lot more conservative. (Finnie's) not afraid to go out and take risks, and it's paid off,” said Bob Cumley, Springfield's deputy city manager, who postponed retirement plans to fill Finnie's shoes. “The redevelopment of center city would not have happened if he hadn't been willing to take the risks to get that going.”

For Finnie, it was an easy choice.

“We need to see ourselves as a metropolitan area and have the financial support from the state and federal government as a metro area. It's Kansas City, St. Louis and Springfield. We're on that level now,” he said.

The future

Finnie seems to be pleased with the direction the city is headed.

While Finnie said a city needs to grow to survive - “Cities and communities aren't helicopters; they can't hover in one place” - managing that growth is going to be the major issue for city leaders.

“I think it's extremely important that we not have growth just for the sake of growth,” he said. “The growth here in the past few years has created job opportunities, which I think has improved our quality of life. I think you can have both growth and improved quality of life, but you have to work at it very hard.”

With all the programs and achievements in 15 years at the helm of Springfield government, Finnie said he's excited about what the future holds.

“To me, tomorrow is always more exciting than yesterday,” he said. “My wife gave me a little (sign) that says, 'Lord, give me patience, and I want it right now.' There's some things I could have seen happening faster, but looking back, I haven't had a lot of disappointments.”

Finnie said Springfield will be just fine after he retires.

“I'm not good at looking back. I'm more focused on creating processes that develop favorable outcomes than focusing on the outcomes,” he said. “If you get the right process in place, the outcome will take care of itself.”

Then And Now

A lot has changed in Springfield since Tom Finnie took the city manager position in 1990. Finnie has been instrumental in this growth.

City operating budget

1990: $73.4 million

2005: $238.3 million

Capital improvement budget

1990: $15.3 million

2004: $95.2 million

City employees

(full-time equivalent)

1990: 1,200

2005: 1,609

Parks facilities

1990: 43

2005: 88

City area

(in square miles)

1990: 69.3

2005: 79.8

Downtown Development/Jordan Valley Park timeline

1995: Small Business Development Loan program begins

1997: Vision 20/20 process starts

February 1998: Hotel/motel tax increases 2.5 cents

1998: Springfield Finance and Development Corp. loan program begins

September 2001: Jordan Valley Ice Park opens

May 2002: Jordan Valley Park opens

May 2003: Vision 20/20 is renewed

September 2003: Springfield Exposition Center and Jordan Valley Car Park open

July 2004: Heer's Tower redevelopment is announced

April 2004: Hammons Field opens and Missouri State University Board of Governors announces Jordan Valley Innovation Center

September 2004: College Station development is announced

October 2005: Creamery Arts Center grand opening is scheduled

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