Tallahassee City Manager Announces Retirement

Anita Favors-Thompson

By Travis Milton
Outlook Writer

After 25 years of service to the Tallahassee community, City Manager Anita Favors Thompson has announced her retirement.

 
Upon coming to Tallahassee where she first served as the Assistant City Manager and later being appointed as City Manager in 1997, Anita Favors Thompson has made major strides in the Tallahassee community and ultimately helped the capital city grow to what it has become today.

 
During the many years under the leadership of Favors Thompson, Tallahassee has grown to a population of more than 200,000.

 
“We’ve never had a dull moment in all of the many years that I’ve been here. I don’t remember a time where we weren’t constructing something or planning for a new building, a new road, a new activity,” says Favors Thompson.

 
Throughout her tenure, Favors Thompson has been a part of various projects such as downtown enhancements to Kleman Plaza, the new construction of Cascades Park, and the recently unveiled FAMU Way among many others.

 
“What Anita Favors Thompson has done is make herself an icon in the city of Tallahassee. She has ushered a countless amount of projects that have benefitted the whole community,” says Leon County Commissioner Nick Maddox.

 
Effective November 20, 2015, Favors Thompson will leave her final mark in a city in which she has served tirelessly over the past 25 years and the title as Tallahassee’s City Manager will all be a memory.

 
When asked the question if her upcoming retirement was a bittersweet moment, Favors Thompson replied saying, “It’s exhilarating to be retiring. The bitter part of it is me leaving friends and many people that I’ve worked with who’ve done such a great job over the years.”

 
Among others who can attest to all of the marvelous things that Favors Thompson has done in the capital city is Florida House Representative Alan Williams.
“City Manager Anita Favors Thompson has dedicated her life to this community in a way that will pay dividends for generations to come,” says Representative Williams.
Williams goes on to add that with leaders in the community like City Manager Favors Thompson, some state and city officials have learned how to better suit the needs of their constituents and make Tallahassee a wonderful place to call home.

 
“She has been a source of support, counsel, kind of like a big sister,” Rep. Williams said. In the 20 plus year span that Favors-Thompson has been serving in Leon County, the city of Tallahassee has twice been named as an All-America City in 1999 and this year in 2015, the Parks and Recreation Department was named Best in America in 2004, the city was honored as a Green City in 2008 for efforts to preserve and protect its natural resources, along with many other accolades to account for all of the hard work she has put in.

 
“All of those things have come to fruition over these past 20 plus years, really changing the landscape of this community significantly,” Favors Thompson adds.
The city of Tallahassee will forever speak volumes for all of the hard work City Manager Anita Favors Thompson has done.
“The legacy she’ll leave behind is one that will never be able to be matched nor replaced. I’m just glad I was able to work with a public servant of her caliber,” Maddox stated.