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Published Dec 14, 2013 Published Saturday December 14, 2013 Kelly: A quarter-century of change in Council Bluffs, with Tom Hanafan leading the way By Michael Kelly / World-Herald columnist

REBECCA S. GRATZITHE WORLD-HERALD

After more than 25 years in office, Council Bluffs Mayor Tom Hanafan has plenty of mementos. On Friday, Hanafan said he's already taken 21 boxes of items out of his office with many more to go.

Tom Hanafan has straddled the Missouri River like no one else -one foot planted firmly in his hometown but the other f eque epping across to Omaha.

As mayor of Council Bluffs for more than a quarter-century, the good-natured Hanafan has served opposi e nine Omaha ma ors and joke that he is tired of breaking then in.

As he steps down as chief executive of his Iowa city of 62,000, he is being praised for his regional outlook. But even more so, people on both sides of the Muddy Mo marvel how much the Bluffs has changed under his long leadership.

"I don't know how you can watch a city go through that much transformation and still have the same leadyr," said Clare Duda of Omaha, a Douglas County Board member for 21 years. "Usually with that much change, you change leadership, too. To watch what he has done with Council Bluffs - he is doing something right."

If the Bluffs has undergone transformation - with casinos, hotels, sports and entertainment cepters, massive public art, a new public library, high-tech investment, completion of a 15-year sewer-separation project and more - Hanafan, who grew up in a blue-collar railroad family, has served as the conductor and head transformer.

Self-described as "kind of a wild kid in high school," Hanafan, 66, is on his victory lap, his last month as mayor before retiring on Jan. 3. Despite being a short-timer, though, he isn't coasting.

He attended a statewide meeting in Des Moines on Wednesday about 2014 Iowa legislative priorities, and a luncheon on Thursday for city employees in the Bluffs.

Then he called across to Omaha to say he would be a bit late for a governmental board meeting. That's P because he wanted to attend a farewell party for Bluffs Sewer Superintendent Chuck Pendgraft, a Vietnam veteran retiring after 43 years.

City employees such as Pendgraft, the mayor said, are the ones who hold a community together.

Hanafan admires those who work with their hands as well as their heads and get things done. His own family included a dad and uncles who worked long careers with U , e ob there aateenager.

A graduate of Thomas Jefferson High School, Tom play football at the University of So akota and majored in history and government.

He soon began officiating high school football, which he did for 40 years, and basketball for a number of years, too. As a volunteer, Hanafan helped build a YMCA youth program that he said started with 60 kids and grew to more than 700. http://www.omaha.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20131214/NEWS/131219277/1111 &te... 1/14/2014 Printer Friendly Version Page 2 of 3

He won election to the City Council in 1982 in part, he says, because many of those youths from the Y distributed "Vote for Tom" fliers around town.

Council Bluffs switched to a strong-mayor form of government like Omaha's, and Hanafan, a former confection and tobacco salesman, was elected in 1987. He was re-elected in 1989 and five times after that.

His successor, Mayor-elect Matt Walsh, said Hanafan could have been re-elected mayor as long as he wanted to stay.

"He's someone people can talk to," said Walsh, an 18-year veteran of the City Council. "He is not aloof. Tom isjust familiar with the common man, and he never let that change him no matter how long he remained in office."

Said Hanafan: "It's been kind of an amazing opportunity for a guy who grew up in the west end to stay with the city this long."

Council Bluffs has charming features, such as the General Dodge House, Bayliss Park and the Union Pacific Museum in a former Carnegie library building, as well as expensive homes in the hills. But it ha long been seen as a working-class town, especially among the modest homes on the west end where Hanafan grew up.

As a kid, Tom played near what he called Stink Creek, which he pronounces "Stink Crick." Decades later under his mayoral watch, casinos and hotels were built nearby, and the stinky "crick" was replaced with a modem storm sewer.

The rise of the gambling industry in Council Bluffs at times has placed him at odds with Omaha, where state law does not permit casinos.

In fact, the advent of the Bluffs Run dog track in the late 1980s and then casinos in the 1990s helped lead to the demise in 1995 of an Omaha icon and economic engine that some thought would last forever, the Ak-Sar-Ben horse-racing track.

When Hal Daub was mayor of Omaha (1994-2001), he oncq called Iowa "a triple-X-rated state" and criticized the casinos for creating problem gamblers.

Hanafan said casinos have succeeded in part because people in the metro area were used to gambling at Ak-Sar-Ben.

Since 1996, the three casinos have produced $75 million in gambling tax revenue for Council Bluffs. Hanafan said they also pro de 2,300 jobs, w about three-fifths of them going to Nebraskans. .

The mayor's relationship with Omaha mostly has been warm. After a 1988 tornado caused $43 million in damage and injured 80 people, he noted that many of the volunteers who helped with the cleanup came from the west side of the river.

And after the Missouri flooded for 114 days in 2011 -when he and others worked 14-hour days and guarded against sand boils undermining the levees - he praised Omaha officials for organizing and continuously pumping water that saved Eppley Airfield.

"Eppley could have gone under," Hanafan told me recently at the Omaha Press Club. "The airfield people-and the City of Omaha did a wonderful job. That was scary." *

Hanafan now serves as co-chairman of Heartland 2050, a long-term vision of the OWH Columnists Metropolitan Area Planning Agency for eight counties in the Omaha-Council*Bluffs area. He will continue in that role, and said "this amazing region has unlimited opportunities for growth."

The MAPA board, on which he has served for years, honored him Thursday in Omaha. He was hailed not only for his success as mayor and for his contributions to the region but also for his "magnetism and good cheer."

Shaking his hand, a mayor from the Nebraska side of the river, Doug Kindig of La Vista, said simply: "Tom, you have been what a politician is supposed to be.,'

In the late 1990s, Hanafan was wooed by national Democrats to run for Congress, and he Columnists Michael Kelly, Erin Grace and Matthew even attended a meeting at the White House. But he said he'd rather be close to constituents Hansen write about people, places and events around at home, where he can chat with them and hear their questions while he pumps gas for his Omaha. Read more of their work here. car.

Not everything has gone perfectly. The Mid-America Center, a $74 million convention center and arena that opened in 2002, has lost money, though Hanafan said he doesn't consider building it a mistake.

But there is much that has gone right. MidAme can Energy Co. built a $1.2 billi ant, Iowa's largest coal power plant. And a great irony for the supposed roughneck, blue-collar town is that it dre om igh-tect Google, which opened a

The transformation of Council Bluffs isn't due to any one person, but for a quarter-century the city has been led by one person.

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"We have things today that people would not have thought possible 25 years ago," said Bob Mundt, president and CEO of the Council Bluffs Chamber of Commerce. "Tom has done a great job of utilizing his staff and the expertise of the community to build a vision."

The chamber CEO added that Hanafan is very good at building consensus.

"He can talk to any group, find out what they have in common and use common threads to bind everybody," Mundt said. "He isjust a personable guy, and it's hard not to like him."

As for Hanafan's metrowide, both-sides-of-the-river outlook, Mundt said: "Tom realizes there is so much more that we have in common than is different. He tends to focus on those things."

Hanafan and his wife of 43 years, Shirley, were honored this fall by Iowa Western Community College. She is retired after 25 years at Union Pacific and is a longtime community volunteer for nonprofit groups.

The couple have two children: Chris, a teacher and coach at Lewis Central High School, and Kari, a physical therapist. In retirement, the Hanafans plan to enjoy more time with grandchildren.

Omaha and Council Bluffs are not twin cities - one is seven times larger than the other. But the Bluffs has come out from the shadow of its big brother across the river.

In his office, Mayor Hanafan displays a favorite photo. It shows him smiling with former Omaha Mayor Mike Fahey and former U.S. Sen. Bob Kerrey of Nebraska on the pedestrian bridge connecting Omaha and Council Bluffs.

Today, within a few minutes, a person could walk down Mike Fahey Street in Omaha and across the Bob Kerrey Bridge to the new Tom Hanafan River's Edge Park in Council Bluffs. Hanafan chuckles at the thought.

He didn't set out to have a park named for him, but there it sits in the Bluffs' west end, a mile from his childhood home.

The Hanafan Park's permanent sitting areas, by the way, face-the Omaha skyline.

Tom Hanafan is a member of the Omahiisoftball hall offame as w 11as a former president of the Iowa League of Cities. His home and office phone numbers begin with the 712 area code ot western lowa, but is cellphone uses the 402 ofeastern Nebraska.

He maintains first loyalty to his hometown. But he knows that a mere hyphen separates Omaha-Council Bluffs -and that we live in one metropolitan area.

Copyright 02014 Omaha World-Herald®. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, displayed or redistributed for any purpose without permission from the Omaha World-Herald.

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With Hanafan's guiding hand, Council Bluffs stepped out of Omaha's shadow

By Andrew Nelson WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER 1Mze 4 V /

News Alefis 81 Like Share

Related news Photos: Tom Hanafan through the years * Brent Sienrist sayshis skills would fit Council Bluffs mayor's io * Former Iowa Hose Sneaker Brent Sie'rist to run for BIIffs maor * World-Herald editorial: Can-do mayor 4 COUNCIL BLUFFS - Mayor Tom Hanafan vowed Hanafan hasdone a lot for Council Eluffs Wednesdato stay involved in community affairs * Wuhowill succeed Hanafan as Bluffs mayor? Two exoressinterest after he leaves the mayor's office in January.

"Idon't want to go home and lay on the cpuch," Related links Hanafan said during a press conferenge at City Hall. * Photos:Tom Hsnafan "I want to take some time off and see what * on v rpsanal has olaved happens ... I want to stay involved," transformino his side of theriver

Hanafan announced Tuesday hp is not running for re-election after spendi t of Council Bluffs.

Hanafan, 65, would not speculate on who may succeed him. He said he knew of a few people looking into it, but he declined to say who they are. "I've heard some names but they have to make their own announcement," he s

The next mayor will be selected in the ve er election.

One of those who may enter the race is ouse Speaker Brent Siegrist.

"I am definitely interested, but now that he's made his announcement we'll do some due diligence and make a decision in the very near future," he said when contacted by a reporter Wednesday.

Siegrist, 60, of Council Bluffs is the executive director of the Iowa Area Education Agencies. He served in the Iowa Legislature for 18 years but did not seek re-election in 2002. He's a Republican but said the nonpartisan nature of the mayor's job appeals to him.

"It's a whole new era for Council Bluffs," he said. "It will be something for people to have a mayoral race that will likely be competitive."

Council Bluffs climbed out of Omaha's shadow during Hanafan's time in office. Three large casinos, the Bass Pro Shops, Mid-American Center and shopping centers such as the Lake Manawa Center and Metro Crossing were developed, becoming major draws.

"He started the ball rolling," said Bob Mundt, president and CEO of the Council Bluffs Chamber of Commerce " ave the hadows of Omaha anymore. ... He of instilled -o attitude."

Hnafan is lo igest-serving current mayor of any major lowa city. Tom Hanafan

The Bluffs native was e ec e to the City Council Born: 1947 in Council Bluffs in 1982 and appointed by the council to serve as mayor in 1985. In 1987, Council Bluffs switched to an elected mayor form of government, and Emolo e: fons Hanafanand tobacco salesman for 18 years before becoming mayor He has served as the city's full-time mayor ever since, earning the unofficial title of "mayor for ducation: graduate of Thomas life." Jefferson High School, 1965; history and government degree

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But now Hanafan is ready to turn the reins over from University of South Dakota to someone else. "Twenty-five years is a lot at Vermillion, 1969. longer than I ever thought I'd be here," Hanafan said. Political party: Democrat

The next mayor of Council Bluffs will be selected Political experience: City in the November election. Council: 1982-1986. Elected mayor in 1987 and re-elected in Hanafan was born and raised in Council Bluffs, 1989, 1993, 1997, 2001, 2005 and growing up on the city's west side, not far from 2009. the casinos he would later help bring to the city.

Family: "I was kind of a wild kid in high school," Shirley, wife; children, Chris and Kari Hanafan told a World-Herald reporter shortly after taking office. "I remember the principal saying I would never go anywhere in life. I wonder what he would think now."

He graduated in 1965 from Thomas Jefferson High and earned a bachelor's degree in history and government from the University of South Dakota in 1969.

Before he assumed the city's top office, he worked as a salesman. After taking over as mayor in 1988, Hanafan set a tone of active leadership.

When a tornado struck Council Bluffs in July of that year, he stayed up all night, "red- faced and haggard," according to a World-Herald account, directing the city's recovery efforts. His staff eventually took the mayor back to his damaged home and put him to bed. More than 8o Bluffs residents were injured in the storm.

That wasn't the only time Hanafan dealt with a major disaster.

U.S. Sen.-Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, said Hanafan's ability to get things done was apparent during the Missouri River flooding during the summer of 2011.

"Tom sprang into action, monitoring the situation closely and then working with my office and other federal offices to help his community recover," Harkin said in a statement.

But Hanafan may be most remembered for his negotiations with casino operators.

Hanafan made sure the casinos had major stakes in the Bluffs. Harvey's (now Harrah's) and Ameristar were required to build hotels near the casinos and to pay for roads and other infrastructure around their riverfront sites.

The city has received about $75 million in gambling tax revenue from the three casinos since 1996, said Art Hill, the city's finance director. This does not include the grants from the Iowa West Foundation , which is funded by investment income and, indirectly, casino revenues.

The city has used gambling money to help build the new downtown library and to fund part of the improvements to historic Bayliss Park.

Not everyone thinks gambling has been good for Council Bluffs. Pat Loontjer, executive director of Gambling with the Good Life, said that if someone were to stand on a bridge between the two cities, Omaha would appear much more prosperous.

"When you look into Omaha, you see high-rises. You see Fortune 5oo companies," Loontjer said.

She said the benefits of casino gambling are outweighed by the negative effects of gambling addiction and other problems.

The Bluffs' growth hasn't just centered on gambling, however.

The city landed a MidAmerican Energy coal plant and Google data center on Hanafan's watch.

It also developed 40 miles of hiking and biking trails and developed the River's Edge Park, which is on the eastern end of the Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge.

Council Bluffs' population has increased by at least 15 percent, or more than 8,ooo residents, during Hanafan's tenure. The 1990 Census counted 54,315 Bluffs residents,

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while the latest Census Bureau estimate for the city was 62,466 in 2011.

Mundt lauded Hanafan's efforts to get the city's sewers separated, which started early in his tenure. The work is now nearly complete, making the city more attractive to development and industry.

Hanafan also oversaw the construction of the city-owned Mid-America Center, something he describes as a community asset, though he admits it did not work out as well as he had. hoped. The center has lost money every year since opening in 2002.

"It's not where we want it to be," he said. But "it's kind of southwest Iowa's place for entertainment and activity.... I don't look at it as a failure."

Hanafan jokes that he has broken in several Omaha mayors during his tenure. Omaha's current mayor said Tuesday that he learned to interact with the public better by watching Hanafan.

"Being a good listener, trying to absorb what you are hearing - whether the citizen is telling you something that is complimentary or not so complimentary - you have to keep a calm about yourself," said Mayor Jim Suttle. "I saw him do that over and over again."

Hanafan said he is not retiring. His wife, Shirley, is retiring, and he would like to spend more time with his six grandchildren.

He said he has reached a point in his life where he does not want to be on call all the time. He says he isn't sure what's next - maybe consulting.

"I don't have anything in particular," he said. "I want to stay active. I don't just want to go home and retire."

Former Omaha Mayor Mike Fahey said the next mayor of Council Bluffs will have big shoes to fill, but they will also have the benefit of Hanafan leaving the city in good shape.

"They have a good role model," he said. "I think that anybody who does the job ... is bound to be successful."

World-Herald staff writer Paul Goodsell and researcher Jeanne Hauser contributed to this report.

Contact the writer: 402-444-1310, [email protected]

Major projects during Hanafan's tenure

Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge

The $22 million bridge connecting Council Bluffs and downtown Omaha opened in September 2008. Bob Kerrey, the former U.S. senator from Nebraska for whom the bridge is named, secured a $19 million federal earmark for the project before leaving office in 2000. The Cities of Omaha and Council Bluffs, along with some other groups, made up the balance on the project. Omaha city officials are currently considering an addition to the west end of the bridge to allow pedestrians easier access to CenturyLink Center parking lots and the TD Ameritrade Park area,

fom World-Herald and World-Herald News Service archives

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Events during Council Bluffs Mayor Tom Hanafan's tenure

- July 1988: Tornado strikes causing $43 million worth of damage in Council Bluffs. Hanafan describes the tornado as "the worst catastrophe in his 41 years in Council Bluffs."

- 1995-1996: Three casinos move into Council Bluffs after Hanafan negotiates deals with casino operators seeking to locate in the metro area. In March 1995, a casino moves into the Bluffs Run dog track (now Horseshoe). In January 1996, the Harveys (now Harrah's) and Ameristar open.

- 2002: Mid-America Center, the $74 million convention center and arena opens at the junction of Interstates 8o and 29.

- 2002: A two-year, $1.5 million renovation turns Woodrow Wilson Pool into the city's newest water park, Pirate Cove Water Park, located at 915 N. 21st St.

- 2003: Carnegie Library is renovated into a Union Pacific Museum in downtown Council Bluffs.

- September 2003: MidAmerican Energy Co., breaks ground for a $1.2 billion plant - the state's largest coal power plant.

- November 20o5: A $1.15 million fundraising goal is reached for Bayliss Park. Improvements include a new fountain, a pavilion, water jets in a children's play area, sidewalks and landscaping.

- November 2005: Bass Pro Shops' Outdoor World opens.

- 2007: Google announces plans to locate in Council Bluffs. In 2012, the company announces a $2oo million project, which will bring its overall investment in Iowa to about $s.s billion.

- 2oo9: Public art takes on monumental proportions thanks to a $9 million grant from the Iowa West Foundation. The art can be seen at the Mid-America Center, Bayliss Park and the 24th Street overpass of Interstate 80.

- 2010: Council Bluffs Public Library is renovated; teen center added.

- 2013: River's Edge Park opens. The $7 million park on the eastern end of the Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge will offer recreation and entertainment options. The park's centerpiece, the great lawn, will include an amphitheater capable of holding 1,ioo people. The park's grand opening celebration is May 25.

Compiled by World-Herald researcher Jeanne Hauser.

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PUBLISHEDWEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 6 2013AT 1:00AM I UPDATEDAT 9:51 AM

RYAN SODERLINfrHE WORLD-HERALD Toni Hanafin

OUTGOING MAYOR World-Herald editorial: Tom Hanafan was big for Council Bluffs

NewsAlerlts 8 1 Like Share

Modern Council Bluffs can trace much of its can-do attitude to the longest-serving mayor of a major Iowa city, the indefatigable Tom Hanafan.

But for the first time since he took office in 1988, Hanafan's name was off Tuesday's mayoral ballot. That change calls for a tip of the cap to a longtime partner for regional economic growth.

Hanafan fought hard for developments to help the Bluffs stand apart from big brother Omaha - to give his city a separate identity while still leveraging the benefits of its larger) neighbor.

From the opening of the dt to the riverfront development of casino hotels and parks and the now-troubled-but-once-revolutionary Mid-America Center,*Hanafan led.

Council Bluffs, under his leadership, worked to revive the city's front porches, from the exits along Interstates So and 29 to the bridge from downtown Omaha across town.

The city also emphasized reviving a re-envisioned historic downtown Council Bluffs that the nation got to see during the most recent presidentiMl campaign and locals see now at night.

Omaha complicated what had been a slam-dunk win for Hanafan with the Mid-America Center when it built CenturyLink Omaha to compete, but Hanafan shoultake credit for early success that put additional pressure on Omaha elders to replape an aging Civic Auditorium.

Hanafan's successor will inherit financial challenges, starting with a publicly financed arena that could leave taxpayers on the hook as the region's arena-buildig binge continues. There are challenges beyond the arena, too, including beefing up the city's ability to compete for retail dollars.

But Hanafan's successor also inherits a Council Bluffs that knows it can overcome challenges because he showed them his way how - with moxie, determination and the

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public will to compete. The Bluffs has grown by about 8,000 people since he took office, thanks in part to that vibe.

Over the years, the city he led has helped the Bluffs overcome tornadoes, windstorms, hailstorms and the unimaginable public works challenge of the Missouri River flooding of 2011.

His occasional critics, including this newspaper's editorial page, point to the negative impacts of gambling on our region and to his embrace of it. But the Bluffs under Hanafan has been much more than casinos.

It is a place that believes it can be more.

http://www.omaha.com/article/20131106/NEWSO8/131109223 1/14/2014 Council Bluffs, the economy has grown, and the city's infrastructure has been transformed, including the amazing recreation complex on South 24 Street. Tom is a great friend and an outstanding public servant. Tonight, I join with the Daily Nonpareil and people across Council Bluffs in saluting Mayor Hanafan's vision and leadership. Thank you, Tom. And keep up the great work!

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Published Mar 26, 2013 Published Tuesday March 26, 2013 Hanafan has played major role over 2 decades in transforming his side of the river By Tom Shaw WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

RUDY SMITH/THE WORLD-HERALD

Council Bluffs Mayor Tom Hanafan talks with longtime friend Richard Woodard at a Hy-Vee store grand opening in November 2005.

Editor's note: This story was originally published on Nov. 15, 2005.

COUNCIL BLUFFS - Dressed in stripes, Tom Hanafan can be found on Friday nights refereeing high school football games throughout southwest Iowa.

But the field isn't the only place people rely on him to make the right calls.

The citizens of Council Bluffs have looked to Hanafan to guige their city during the past 18 years.

They've seen him lead the Bluffs from an a ing railroad town in the shadow of Omaha to a city with new and expanding businesses and a housing boom. - From three casinos and a new Bass Pro Shops on the west, to upscale neighbor ods on the east, Hanafan has played a maj role in transforming this city of 6,0.

Last week voters gave Hanafan a sixth term as mayor, makin him the Ion est-servin current mayor of any major Iowa city Seven mayors have serve in Omaha during Hanafan's time. But HanAfan, who was first sworn in 1988, says the coming term may be his .

Hanafan, 58, will be mayor until 2010.

"I love what I do," he said. "It's just that 22 years of this is a long time."

Friends say Hanafan's success is rooted in his belief that the Bluffs is an integral part of the Omaha area. What's good for one side of the Missouri River is good for the other.

"He's one of the first ones over here for a ribbon cutting," said Omaha's mayor and fellow Democrat Mike Fahey. "And I'm one of the first ones over there."

Hanafan also is praised for a down-to-earth style.

"le could walk into a working-class bar or a country club and strike up a conversation," said Stat Sen. Mike Gronstal of ncil Bluffs.

Hanafan is the only mayor the Bluffs has ever had under its current form of government. Previous mayors were elected from the City Council for oneyear rotating terms.

When he was elected ma in 1987, H fan said Council Bluffs was struggling with a stagnant economy and an identity crisis.

"I heard all the rumblings, old railroad town, a sleeping giant,"' Hanafan said. "I really felt that we just didn't have that pride and that vigor to

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really make changes."

Hanafan wasn't thinking of a future in the Bluffs or city politics when he left home in the 1960s to go to college in South Dakota.

But after playing college football and graduating with a history degree in 1969, Hanafan did return and worked as a sales representative for a wholesaler. He was approached about a run for school board and instead chose to run for City Council. Hanafan won a spot in 1981.

Many say one of Hanafan's biggest contributions as. mayor was reaching deals in 1994 and 1995 with casino operators who sought to locate in the metro area.

Hanafan made sure the casinos had major stakes in the Bluffs. Harvey's (now Harrah's) and Ameristar were required to build hotels near the casinos and to pay for roads and other infrastructure around their riverfront sites. Gronstal said those were the best casino deals in Iowa because of the infrastructure requirements.

Hanafan and the city used gambling money to help build the new downtown library and for part of the improvements to the more than century-old Bayliss Park.

Steve Cates, the Pottawattamie County Republican chairman, said Hanafan understood that gambling wasn't the total answer for the Bluffs.

"But gaming was the driving force that turned Council Bluffs around," he said. "Let's face it, I don't think Bass Pro Shops would be here unless there was the revitalization after gaming came in."

Not everyone is a fan of the Bluffs casinos. Pat Loontjer, executive director of Gambling With the Good Life in Omaha, said the social costs to the metro area -- from a rise in the number of gambling addicts and bankruptcies to the loss of neighborhood restaurants -- have been high.

"We're talking about families that are devastated," she said.

Hanafan sees his city as a leader in development in the metropolitan area.

He takes pride in pointing out that Cabelas picked a location in La Vista after Bass Pro was well along in constructing its Council Bluffs location. Leaders on the Sarpy County side of the river also had recruited Bass Pro.

Hanafan also notes that the Bluffs' Mid-America Center opened before Omaha's Qwest Center, though the Omaha facility has since snapped up several smaller concerts that the Bluffs center officials had been banking on.

The Bluffs and Omaha have teamed up on projects, most notably on working to secure funding for a $28 million pedestrian bridge across the Missouri River.

Bob Mundt, president of the Bluffs Chamber of Commerce, said Hanafan is committed to the concept of a metropolitan econon Mundt said competition is inevitable when you have leaders trying to expand their city's tax bases and budgets. But She ripple effects of one city failing are felt throughout the region, he said.

"We like to think what's good for us is good for Omaha," Mundt said.

Hanafan says challenges remain for the Bluffs. He said the city has made progress in recent years in changing its image, especially among young people, but needs to do more to clean up and beautify parts of the city. Tfie new lighted entrance on West Broadway was a positive step, he said.

Hanafan's talents have attracted the attention of Iowa's political leaders. He was on Gov. Tom Vilsack's short list for lieutenant governor. He was not selected, but Hanafan also has been approached several times gout a run for Congress.

Hanafan preferred to keep his job at City Hall.

"It's about being closer to the constituents," he said.

Copyright 02014 Omaha World-Herald@. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, displayed or redistributed for any purpose without permission from the Omaha World-Herald.

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http://www.omaha.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20130326/NEWS/I 30329705&templat... 1/13/2014 Remarks by Senator Tom Harkin Retirement Salute to Mayor Tom Hanafan January 25, 2014

N After graduating from Thomas Jefferson High School, he played football at the University of South Dakota. Fm reminded of something that Knute Rockne used to say: Big players. a I don't know how Tom did on the football field, but for the last 25 years, Tom Hanafan has a quintessential big player - big heart, big ideas, big accomplishments.

Another politician who's stepping down after years of service, Sen. Tom Harkin called Hanafan a good friend and an outstanding mayor. The senator commended Hanafan's actions and leadership during the flood of 2011, when he "sprang into action, monitoring the situation closely and then working with my office and other federal offices to help his community recover."

* Elected to City Council in 1982; Elected mayor in 1987, reelected 6 times after that. " Something in the water here in CB such great leaders as Tom Hanafan and Mike Gronstal * CB has taken on some of the personality of its Mayor: up-beat, can-do spirit ... tireless, ambitious, tireless, punching above its weight * Nothing stops Tom Hanafan. He has led the Bluffs response to tornadoes, windstorms, hailstorms, and even the biblical 114-day flooding of the Muddy Mo in 2011. Nothing stops Tom Hanafan. There is no challenge or obstacle he hasn't been able to overcome. Heck, I dare say that if Tom had been the Titanic, the iceberg would have sunk. * Over the last quarter century and more, I've watched Tom evolve from a junior city councilman into Iowa's longest serving and arguable most respected mayor. He has served opposite nine Omaha mayors. As Tom jokes, he got tired of breaking them in. Today, Tom has graduated into the ranks of what I call "senior statesmen" - sure, he's still a skilled politician, but he has a stature that. * But lest Tom get too big for his britches, I want to tell you a story: not wearing any socks. * Transformation: casinos, hotels, sports and entertainment centers, new public library, high-tech investment. 25 years ago, nobody had ever heard of Google - and if they had heard of Google, they'd hever believe that it would set up shop ih CB. 0 Many folks have contributed to the renaissance of CB, but the one constant, the one person always at the heart of the action, has been Tom Hanafan. a He did the impossible: he made Iowa Sexy - Remember when Omaha mayor Hal Daub was so jealous of the casinos' success here in CB, he called Iowa a "triple-X-rated state." Thank you, Tom - I think;. Let the record who that those casinos provide 2,300 jobs - and they've provided much of the tax revenue that has paid for this city's renaissance. 0 True to his roots here in CB, raised in a blue-collar railroad family in the west end. His dad and uncles worked long careers with Union Pacific, and they got Tom a job there as a teenager. To transform this city, he has operated at the highest levels, a respected peer to top other top executives in both the public and private sector. But he has never lost sight of the working people he grew up with, the folks who are the true creators of the wealth and spirit of this city.

0 I met Bill in the late 1960s. He was in his late 30s. He was too old to be a hippie, but he was a passionate liberal and a fierce opponent of the Vietnam War. 0 People in the Bluffs look upon their city with genuine, hard-earned pride. There is a winning spirit here that people pick up on. A quarter century ago, CB was a good place tofrom, if you know what I mean. Today, it is a place that people that attracts people - the population has grown by nearly 8,000 during Tom's tenure.

0 Too many folks, as they get older and wealthier, stray into the dark side and become Republicans. Not Bill Knapp. He has remained a proud progressive throughout his life, with a passion for social and economic justice. " It's easy to run through the impressive list of bricks-and-morter additioins during Tom's tenure - the casinos, and shopping centers, the revitalized historic district, and so on. But that overlooks Tom's biggest accomplishment: He lifted the city's spirit. He taught it to set its sights hightaught the Bluffs to'set its sight highlifted this city's spirits, he gave it confidence in itself, he taught CB to think and dream bigtaught this city to dream.

" A quarter century, CB was in Omaha's shadow, it's "little brother." Under Tom's leadership, that "little brother" has grown up and asserted its own strong identity. Today, heck, many Iowans look upon Omaha as kind of that big Council Bluff suburb to the west. The Bob Kerry bridge doesn't connect the Bluffs to Omaha; it connects Omaha to the Bluffs!

" There's an old saying that we make a living by what we make, but we make a life by what we give. By that measure, Bill Knapp has lived a very rich life indeed. He has given so much of his wealth back to the Des Moines community. He has given to all kinds of good causes - including my campaigns for the Senate! Most generously of all, he has given his friendship, love, and counsel to all of us. And that has enriched both him and us.

* Bill is generous, he is smart, he is savvy. But the one adjective that cannot be applied to Bill Knapp is "retiring." He certainly is not retiring in his personality. And he is not retiring as a businessman, either; he's still going strong as Chairman Emeritus of Knapp Properties, Inc.

" Since 1987, when Tom became CB's first elected mayor, Tom's unofficial title here in CB was "Mayor for Life" - and he certainly could have been. In 2013, the world was shocked But, recently, the world was shocked first by the first retirement of a Pope in 600 years, and then by the retirement announcement of CB's "Mayor for Life." " The fact is, there is life after being mayor, and even life after being Senator. In fact, that life looks pretty dam good, doesn't it, Tom? * Here's my prediction for Tom's future: Retiring after such an amazingly successful run as mayor is sort of like trying to leave the "Hotel California" in that old "Eagles" song from the Sixties. Remember the lyrics: "You can check out, but you can't leave!" To Guests at the 2009 Celebrate CB People Award Banquet

Dear Friends:

I will be with you in spirit, Friday evening, as you come together to both roast and toast my good friend Mayor Tom Hanafan. I have always believed it's a sign of a healthy democracy when we are able to take our political leaders down a peg or two in public, so I'll begin by roasting Tom - gently, of course. Tom has had an amazing run as mayor - more than two decades. Many years back, Tom was suspected of having a mild case of charisma. But, as we all know, he was able to shake it off. Of course, Tom's biggest legacy has been his success in building up the gambling industry in Council Bluffs. It is indeed quite an accomplishment to take a pleasant, God-fearing, family-friendly Iowa community and, in 20 years, turn it into a place that former mayor Gene Leahy has refereed to as "Triple-X City." Way to go, Tom! Soon after Tom was first elected mayor in 1988, Council Bluffs was hit by a devastating tornado. Some people saw that as a warning from on high. But people ignored the warning, and reelecied Tom in 1992. That was followed by the terrible flood of 1993, and another terrible flood in 1999. But Tom just kept getting reelected. It finally dawned on me that all those disasters weren't warnings from on high, they were punishments from on high. But, somehow, Calamity Tom just keeps getting reelected. Tom is now the longest-serving mayor in Council Bluffs history. Apparently, he thinks he is leader for life, sort of like Attorney General-for-life Tom Miller. I have always admired Tom's way with words - especially bad words you're not supposed to say in public. Of course, Tom goes ahead and says them anyway. Some folks got upset when he called the chair of the county board of supervisors a "horse's behind." That's not exactly the word he used - and, in any case that was pretty tame for Tom. He's the only person I have known - that is, since I was in Navy - who can use certain four-letter words as nouns or verbs or adjectives - whatever the occasion calls for. In one famous incident at the Omaha Press Club, Tom came onto the stage throwing money around. Obviously, his hero is Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, who once talked about dropping money from helicopters, if necessary, in order to stimulate the economy. When Tom heard this, he said, "Why didn't I think of that?"

Kidding aside, the truth is that Tom Hanafan is a tremendously talented, tireless, and dedicated mayor. The only thing he loves more than his wife, Shirley, and his family - especially his grandkids - is the city of Council Bluffs itself. Thanks to his leadership over the last two decades, new businesses have been attracted to Disclaimer: This e-mail and any other files transmitted with it are the.property of Goodwill of the Great Plains are confidential, and are intended solely for the use of the individual or entity to whom this e-mail is addressed. If you are not one of the named recipient (s) or otherwise have reason to believe you have received this message in error, please notify the sender at 712.258.4511 and delete this message immediately from your computer. Any other use, retention, dissemination, forwarding, printing or copying of this e-mail is strictly prohibited.

From: O'Brien, Sandi (Harkin) [mailto:Sandi OBrien~harkin.senate.gov] Sent: Thursday, January 09, 2014 11:27 AM To: Nate VanderPlaats; Amanda Nelson (amandajane.nelsongmail.com) Subject: Mayor Hanafan's retirement.

Hello Nate and Amanda,

TH will be attending a retirement event later this month for Mayor Hanafan. If there is any information you can provide that I can pass along to Jim Whitmire for TH's remarks I would appreciate it. I did see where TH had referred to him as the "mayor for life". Any perspective on Hanafan's accomplishments?

FYI Inky is planning the event but no longer works there. It seems like an awkward situation. She told me she was "surprised" by it herself.

Sc~widUO'i rterV Western Iowa Regional Manager U.S. Senator Tom Harkin

32 0 6 th Street Federal Building Room 110 Sioux City, Iowa 51101 (712) 252-1550 (712) 252-7104 (FAX) http://harkin.senate.gov 6 IU

2 Whitmire, Jim (Harkin)

From: O'Brien, Sandi (Harkin) Sent: Friday, January 10, 2014 9:48 AM To: Whitmire, Jim (Harkin) Subject: FW: Mayor Hanafan's retirement.

Jim, I have not worked'with Mayor Hanafan since I've been here. I have asked former staffers to give me some input. You can read the email (below) from Nate VanderPlaats with a funny story about TH and the Mayor.

I will also send you some of the info that Nate references in the email. I know that I have seen that TH referred to Hanafan as the "Mayor for Life". I have also sent correspondence to Maureen Wilson and will FWD whatever I hear back.

From: Nate VanderPlaats [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Thursday, January 09, 2014 3:18 PM To: O'Brien, Sandi (Harkin); Amanda Nelson ([email protected]) Subject: RE: Mayor Hanafan's retirement.

This is great - Hanafan is a real gem and I am so sad to see him go! Matt will do a fine job, but Hanafan has been there for so long it will take some adjusting.

The best resources are past remarks. About 5 years ago, there was a roast of Tom Hanafan in CB/Omaha. Maureen attended in Tom's absence and read a great letter about some hilarious interactions. The lasf time I saw Hanafan was ameeting with TH. We were all weary and pretty worn from the most exhausting summer we can recall. We're at breakfast or something, and whole damn event goes downhill from there. It was supposed to be me, TH and Mayor - except half the emergenc mgt team and sheriff decided to show up with more folks - 12 in all. Around a tiny table at the Hilton Garden Inn. was the definition of cluster.... Anywho, everyone is exhausted and in the middle of someone's comments (I believe it was Art Hill, a cocky SOB finance manager in City Hall that none of us liked anyway) TH looks at Mayor and says 'why aren't you wearing any socks?' Just totally out of the blue. It was EXACTLY what we needed that morning and everyone had a big laugh out of it. I was still laughing when we got into the MO.

Honestly though, the best resource is that speech. I think Whitmire probably wrote it, but it is somewhere in my old files under Council Bluffs or something similar. TH should be very gracious for Hanafan's work on behalf of CB. We had a GREAT relationship and he's one of those long-time elected officials that you just love to work vith because he wants to do good things for a community he loves. He had more impact on CB than any elected official in the history of the community or maybe even in the history of the state. They will miss him!

Nathan Vander Plaats, MPA Director of Mission Services for IAand NE 3100 West 4 th Street I Sioux City, IA 51103 | Direct 712-224-1315 I Cell 563-940-1620 | www.qoodwillqreatplains.orq | Building Independence, Quality of Life and Work Opportunities.

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1 Whitmire, Jim (Harkin)

From: Moreland, John (Harkin) Sent: Thursday, January 09, 2014 3:50 PM To: Ringleb, Pam (Harkin); Whitmire, Jim (Harkin); O'Brien, Sandi (Harkin); Lynch, Alex (Harkin) Subject: RE: 1/25 event for Tom Hanafan in Council Bluffs - talking points/speech

Excellent piece here on Hanafan: http://www.omaha.com/article/20130326/NEWS/130329713

And a piece that is a little dated but still spot-on: http://www.omaha.com/article/20130326/NEWS/130329705#nov-15- 2005-hanafan-has-plaved-major-role-over-2-decades-in-transforming-his-side-of-the-river

JM

From: Ringleb, Pam (Harkin) Sent: Thursday, January 09, 2014 11:13 AM To: Whitmire, Jim (Harkin); O'Brien, Sandi (Harkin); Ringleb, Pam (Harkin); Moreland, John (Harkin); Lynch, Alex (Harkin) Subject: FW: 1/25 event for Tom Hanafan in Council Bluffs - talking points/speech

TH has agreed to attend this event. Sandi has confirmed it with the event planner. Sandi is taking the lead on the logistical memo and I am sure she will enlist the assistance of leg staff for a substantive portion of the briefing. Alex Lynch will also be staffing TH at the event in Council Bluffs. I will include John Moreland and Alex Lynch on this e- mail. John, Alex and Sandi may have some insight as to Hanafan's accomplishments. So rather than a letter - it appears we will need a speech or talking points! Sandi, Alex, John - please share with Jim anything you know about him. Thanks, Pam

From: Whitmire, Jim (Harkin) Sent: Thursday, January 09, 2014 9:32 AM To: Ringleb, Pam (Harkin) Subject: RE: 1/25 event for Tom Hanafan in Council Bluffs

Pam, I'll be happy to help with this. Since I know nothing about Tom Hanafan or his relationship with Tom, would you please get me basic information: how far back do they go; have they collaborated on any CB projects; what are Hanafan's signature accomplishments or things he is proud of? Thanks-Jim

From: Ringleb, Pam (Harkin) Sent: Thursday, January 02, 2014 3:23 PM To: Barron, Rob (Harkin); Ahlberg, Brian (Harkin); Jones, Lindsay (Harkin); Berge, Katie (Harkin); O'Brien, Sandi (Harkin); Ringleb, Pam (Harkin); Whitmire, Jim (Harkin); Cyrul Frischmann, Kate (Harkin) Subject: RE: 1/25 event for Tom Hanafan in Council Bluffs

Also bringing in Kate and Jim. We may want to enlist Jim's assistance in writing a retirement letter and perhaps Kate will want to issue a statement on behalf of TH to the local news, if he hasn't already. Just covering the bases..... Thanks, Pam

1 From: Barron, Rob (Harkin) Sent: Thursday, January 02, 2014 1:40 PM To: Ahlberg, Brian (Harkin); Jones, Lindsay (Harkin); Berge, Katie (Harkin); Ringleb, Pam (Harkin); O'Brien, Sandi (Harkin) Subject: 1/25 event for Tom Hanafan in Council Bluffs

Sandi has been working with staff in the Council Bluffs Mayor's office on an event Saturday, 1/25, in Council Bluffs to honor the now-former Mayor, Tom Hanafan. The request to us initially was for TH to produce a letter to be read, but there is a good case to be made to getting TH out to CB to speak at the ceremony. It offers him a large event focused around a retrospection on Council Bluffs area development over the last 25 years- fits our legacy theme very nicely! Hanafan is also a good friend.

The most recent information I have is that the event will take place at the Mid America Center and start around 1:00. Sandi can you confirm that with Inky and email us back?

Rob

2 * Thursday

1/9, 5:18pm Maureen Wilson

There was a connector bridge on the north side of CB that I think he might have been instrumental in getting done. I think it was the 12th street connector bridge or something like that. He also worked on the NE/IA walking bridg'e across the Missouri River - Not sure how much involvement he had in establishing the kalking trail in CB, but you could check that out. also, the pillars into CB at the 480 bypass, the New MidAmerican Center, you might check these out to see what his involvement was. I suspect that he vas highly involved in this. I'm sorry to hear he is retiring. Maybe he will run for Congress in the near future. I hope so. There have been rumors about him running for Congress for years. If you get a chance, please give Hanafan my regards.