A faithful servant to two communities

Time flies when you are doing what you love in a place that you love.

In the case of Gary Riedner, it’s two places he loves. Riedner, 63, of Colton, recently stepped back from his longtime service on the Colton School Board, and in January he will retire from the city of Moscow, where he has served 26 years as city supervisor and as the city’s attorney for three years before that.

It’s been a busy nearly three decades for Riedner, who has lived by the belief that it’s important to give back to your community. Or, in his case, communities.

Craig Clohessy: What made you decide it was time to step away from public service?

Gary Riedner: Regarding the supervisor position, I’ve been doing it for a long time. I really enjoy my job, so it was a tough decision, but you know as you get grandkids and other, how shall I say, demands on your time and get a little more perspective, plus we have a great team here and they’re ready to take the reigns. It seemed like the opportune time.

CC: Do you have a favorite memory or accomplishment during the time you’ve served as city supervisor?

GR: From a city managerial standpoint or administrative standpoint, we developed a strategic plan at the beginning of Mayor (Bill) Lambert’s administration and I’d say that is the single guiding document that allowed the success that we’ve had. I’m very pleased with that. I think you should have an eye for long-range planning, you should spend time on that and we have, and we’ve made some accomplishments because of it.

CC: Much of your early career centered around the law as a deputy prosecuting attorney, private practice attorney and city attorney. What led you to making the career change 26 years ago?

GR: My wife and I were in Pocatello and I was in private practice. The job opening came up for Moscow city attorney and my wife, Teri, and I are both from Colton. We looked at it and I’d just assumed every lawyer in the state was going to apply. I threw my hat in the ring and I got that. We were able to move back. And then in late 1994, my predecessor, Bill Smith, was city supervisor and he became ill. The council or the mayor came forward and asked me to act as an interim city supervisor in February of ’95. They appointed me at that time. It was one of those things, that you know you don’t get offered a position to administer a corporation very often, especially as an attorney. I thought it was a great opportunity to learn more about the city and sharpen my managerial skills.

CC: A loaded question for you. Do you have a favorite mayor you’ve worked with while with the city of Moscow?

GR: You know, I knew I was going to get that question sooner or later. We’ve got a new mayor coming in that I will serve for one council meeting under, Art Bettge, and I would say that the four mayors I’ve had — Paul Agidius, Marshall Comstock, Nancy Chaney and Bill Lambert — they’ve all got individual strengths and I’ve appreciated working with them. Obviously Bill Lambert is a very dynamic individual and we made a lot of great strides the last eight years, but I’ve enjoyed working under all the mayors.

CC: The voters in the city of Lewiston just cast their ballots for a strong mayor form of government, much like how the city of Moscow is governed. Do you think that form of governance is the most efficient and effective way for a city to operate?

GR: I believe so as long as the management, the operational management of the city is considered to be a professional-grade job. In other words, I believe it takes a professional to do that. Boy, that’s a tough question. I think it depends on what the individual community wants but as long as professionals, managers, operation managers are allowed to provide that expertise, then yeah, I think it’s a workable form of government. I think it can work very well.

CC: You’re also known for all your volunteer efforts, especially in your hometown of Colton. Do you plan to continue to volunteer?

GR: I will scale it back some, but yeah, I still hope I’m useful in some way, shape or form to organizations.

CC: What’s driven you to dedicate so much of your time over the years to volunteer efforts?

GR: What I tell the people I work with here in Moscow is, you know what makes a good civil servant is having the heart of a servant. And even though we’re not making policy, we’re able to add our expertise and provide value in the city’s case to our citizens. I think it’s an obligation of anyone to give back to their community. I think one of the great things that the community of Moscow and the community of Colton have is that (with the help of) a lot of volunteers, a lot of stuff gets done that otherwise wouldn’t get done. And that’s what makes the community worth living in. So I just wanted to support that effort.

CC: Anything else you’d like to add?

GR: It’s going to be a little tough, retiring. I’ve been a busy person and yeah, it’s just going to be a little bit tough. But, I’m looking forward to the challenges of retirement.

Clohessy is managing editor of the Lewiston Tribune. He may be contacted at cclohessy@lmtribune.com or (208) 848-2251.

Name: Gary J. Riedner.

Age: 63.

City of residence: Colton.

Title/occupation: Moscow city supervisor, attorney.

Family: Married to Teri for 37 years; four children, Casey, Nikki, Kirk and Jake; six grandchildren.

Education: Graduate of Colton High School, 1976; University of Idaho, Bachelor of Science in economics, 1981; juris doctorate, 1984.

Work history: Deputy prosecuting attorney Bannock County, 1984-87; deputy prosecuting attorney Kootenai County, 1988; private practice, 1989-91; Moscow city attorney, 1992-95; Moscow city supervisor, 1995-present.

Hobbies/interests: Keeping up with grandkids, brewing beer, processing and smoking bacon and sausage, maintaining orchard, reading, mechanics.

Do you have any hidden talents, or is there anything else that might surprise people about you?: “I don’t have any hidden talents, but I have volunteered a lot over the years, both personally and professionally.” Served on the Colton School Board for 20 years, 15 years as chair; in the 1990s, founding board member and former president of the Colton Education Foundation, which provides scholarships to Colton High School graduates; have served as an officer of the Colton Knights of Columbus, chairing the Steelhead Derby for more than 20 years; currently the chair of St. Gall Catholic Parish Finance Council for many years; serve as current executive board member of the Moscow Chamber of Commerce; one of the founding board members and secretary of the Partnership for Economic Prosperity; former president of the Community Transportation Association of Idaho; former president and board member of SMART Transit; founding board member (along with the late Jan Vassar) and president of the Idaho City Management Association; former president of the Great Open Spaces City Management Association; founding board member and former president of the Redevelopment Association of Idaho.