CHANDLER, Ariz. – The Chandler City Council has approved an employment agreement with John Pombier to serve as acting city manager effective July 13. He most recently worked as Amazon’s Senior Manager of Community Engagement after a 27-year career in public service with Mesa, Phoenix and the Arizona Governor’s Office.
Pombier retired from the City of Mesa in 2022 after 19 years of service, including 11 years as an assistant city manager. At Mesa, he oversaw several departments, including courts, fire, police, environmental management and sustainability, fleet services, innovation and technology, human resources and public information. He also served as Mesa’s city prosecutor for eight years.
Prior to that, he spent two years as Deputy General Counsel at the Arizona Governor’s Office, one year as the Director of the Governor’s Division for Prevention of Family Violence and six years with the City of Phoenix Prosecutor’s Office, including five years as lead attorney for the Domestic Violence Unit.
Pombier graduated from Arizona State University’s School of Law and was admitted to the State Bar of Arizona in 1994. He previously earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of Michigan.
Chandler City Council plans to initiate a national recruitment process for the city manager position with the assistance of an executive search firm in early 2026.
Chandler City Manager Josh Wright announced in May that he will resign the position effective August 1, 2025. He has served as city manager since March 2021.
The city manager oversees the day-to-day operations of the City of Chandler and implements policies adopted by the City Council. It is one of four positions appointed by the City Council, the others being the city attorney, city clerk and presiding magistrate.