Government has been on Eric Hanson’s mind from a young age.
As a political science major at Monmouth College in the mid-90s, he first set his sights on Washington.
“I had just come back from a Washington Focus trip. I had spent time there. I had, on my own, landed a job interning for the Congressman as a freshman,” Hanson said. “So I was thoroughly convinced.”
Hanson also mulled a career in Springfield.
But at Monmouth, he was mentored by professors like the late political scientist Ira Smolensky. He interned for the Warren County State’s Attorney, and he co-chaired a Monmouth mayoral campaign.
Through those experiences, Hanson said he experienced a pivot in his career goals as a different picture about state and federal versus local government started to come into focus.
“It is kind of based in those roots of believing to give back. My whole career essentially has been in local government. I’ve also enjoyed it, I’ve enjoyed work that’s allowed me to fix problems and/or improve the communities I’ve lived in,” Hanson said.
Finding commonality
Galesburg is the fifth Midwestern community where Hanson has worked in city administration, and nearly all have been college towns.
He also served as the youngest mayor of his hometown of Cambridge, after being elected at age 24, shortly after finishing a master’s degree in public administration from the University of Illinois Springfield.
Hanson said working on the Monmouth mayoral campaign of Shawn Gillen as an undergrad planted that seed.
“It was a lot of fun. He was young, he was in his mid-20s,” Hanson said. “He had just finished up graduate work, came back home and ran for mayor. And then went on to be a city manager.”
Hanson was hired by the Galesburg city council on a unanimous vote last fall, and started at city hall Dec. 11. He fills the city manager seat after the previous city manager was on the job for around seven months, and several interims stepped in.
His first council meetings as city manager have been brief, efficient, and harmonious, after some pretty stormy and lengthy sessions over the last year or so due to differences on the city council and extensive public comment.
Hanson has experience working with councils that aren’t always on the same page.
His first city administration gig was in Monmouth, where he was hired on a split vote after the previous city administrator had been fired on a split vote.
“Even folks who are disagreeing, sometimes vehemently disagreeing on some things, have a lot more in common than they give themselves credit for,” Hanson said. “How did I attack that situation? It was trying to find areas of commonality, areas of common interest. You try and focus them on fixing things that everyone can agree are beneficial to move forward.”
Hanson said that experience in Monmouth prepared him well for a career in city administration.
“And also it’s building personal relationships and building trust,” Hanson said. “Ultimately I think I gained good rapport even with those who didn’t vote initially to give me a contract.”
When Hanson left Monmouth five years later for Indianola, Iowa, he also walked into a contentious situation, with the council at odds over projects related to the college there.
“They were very divided. But they found common interest and found opportunities to work together,” Hanson said. “Over the years, you realize that these issues come and go, so it’s really just about finding opportunities to move past those challenges.”
Solving problems
Hanson said he’s most proud of projects in his career that make life better for residents and improve safety.
“In Monmouth, while there’s nothing exciting about it, getting a sewer plant built and being in compliance with EPA regulations was kind of a big deal,” he said.
Also in Monmouth, Hanson worked on new public safety buildings and on preserving historic buildings downtown.
During his tenure in Indianola, following a fatal accident on a four-lane highway there, Hanson said the city utilized grant funds to make that corridor safer, which then spurred development along it.
“It’s also looking at what impact did you have in neighborhoods and what problems did you solve,” he said.
Hanson also spent time in Ballwin, Mo., and most recently was assistant city manager in Normal, Ill., where the electric vehicle manufacturer Rivian has created thousands of jobs in the last few years.
He said while he did not have a stake in recruiting Rivian, he worked hands-on with the company’s mega-expansion in Normal.
“We’re still in the infancy in the EV revolution, right? But there’s no doubt where we’re headed as a country," he said. "To be front and center of a manufacturer that’s building high-tech EV cars, trucks, and delivery vehicles is pretty awesome, I must admit."
A homecoming
Taking the job in Galesburg is a homecoming of sorts for Hanson. His wife is from Monmouth, he grew up in Henry County -- and he worked in Galesburg before he got into city administration.
“There’s not many opportunities in one’s life to come full circle and come home,” he said.
When Hanson worked in Galesburg 20 years ago, it was in the wake of devastating factory closures.
“Many of the foundations that set the stage for my success were done here. Many of the people that I worked with here are still friends today, and made a tremendous impact. And for me, it’s probably a little cliché or a little Pollyanna, but for me, this is an opportunity to give back.”
Hanson said he’s always thought about coming home, but the timing was right this time.
“And there’s opportunity,” Hanson said. “Whereas some people see tremendous challenges, and there are challenges here, there are struggles that are pretty visual but at the same time the bones and foundation here I think are pretty good.”
Hanson said the work in Galesburg will be different than it was in Normal, where new houses couldn’t be built fast enough.
“These challenges here are different, but that’s exciting,” Hanson. “Because I hope five years, ten years from now, we look back and say, here’s the progress that we’ve made, whether it’s neighborhood improvement, whether it’s investing more in our neighborhood parks and our neighborhood infrastructure, and improving the quality of life throughout the community. If at the end of the day, we’ve done that, plus some job creation and maybe diversified our economy a little bit, I’ll feel pretty good about that, because I know the community will be in a better place.
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