Henderson leader takes post with Porter

Longtime Henderson City Manager Phil Speight is leaving the city to become chief of staff to Rep. Jon Porter, R-Nev., in Washington, he confirmed on Monday.

"It was an ideal opportunity," Speight said. "I think the stars all lined up with the way it fell."

Porter said he and Speight had been talking formally about Speight's becoming the lawmaker's top aide for the past couple of weeks.

He will replace Mike Hesse, who has been Porter's chief of staff for the past two years.

Porter said Hesse resigned "to move back to Colorado and be closer to home."

He could not be reached for comment.

Speight, who began working as the city's manager in 1988, said Porter's job offer came at the perfect time. He had planned to retire from the city next year and has always wanted to work in Washington.

"It really was something I wanted to do as a young man," Speight, 59, said, adding that Capitol Hill "is an intoxicating place."

During Speight's tenure, Henderson has grown in population by more than 400 percent, to 265,590. Its budget has increased from $17.2 million in 1988 to $221.4 million for the 2007-08 fiscal year.

Henderson Mayor Jim Gibson and the Henderson City Council issued a joint statement on Monday praising Speight's leadership and "steady hand" over the years.

Speight "has had a significant influence on the way Henderson has grown over the past two decades," the statement read in part. "Congressman Porter is very fortunate to have someone of his caliber, and while it is a great opportunity for Phil, we certainly feel a great loss at his departure."

Speight said he has mixed feelings about leaving the city he has worked in for so many years.

"It's been a blessing for me to be involved in this community."

He will take a significant cut in pay to accept the new position. As Henderson city manager, he makes $212,032 a year. As Porter's chief of staff, he said, he'll make about $150,000.

But the salary doesn't much matter, Speight said.

"You have to remember, I was retiring," he said.

Before he was appointed as Henderson's city manager, Speight served as city manager of Commerce City, Colorado. He also worked as city manager of Winnemucca.

In a statement, Porter praised Speight's extensive career and his deep ties to Southern Nevada.

Speight will begin his new position in November.

Hesse joined Porter's staff in December 2005 after working as chief of staff to Rep. Scott McInness, R-Colo., and as an associate vice president at the University of Colorado. He was credited with helping Porter land a seat on the influential House Ways and Means Committee, and with helping to steer him through a difficult re-election campaign in 2006.

Porter said Hesse is leaving on good terms.

"Mike and I had a lot of successes."