Brian Muenger pushed open the door and walked into a steady stream of people making their way into City Hall. He said his day had been busy, but that was to be expected.

It was Monday, and after meeting with Pell City City Council members, reviewing service providers contracts with the mayor and hashing out financial figures with City staff, he took his seat at the table for his first Council work session. Three hours later, at about 7 p.m., his first day on the job came to an end.

When he started as city manager for the City of Pell City on March 23, Muenger had only been removed from his previous position for a single weekend. He wrapped things up in his role as Talladega’s city manager on Friday, March 20. It seems quick, but he said he’s used to it.

Muenger’s path to Pell City began in May 2007. He graduated from Georgia College & State University in Millidgeville, Ga. with a master’s degree in public administration on a Saturday. On Monday, he was working full-time.

 “I was dumped into a shark tank down there,” he said. “I wished I’d taken a week to get my head on straight.”

From that May until December 2008, Muenger worked as a community development planner with Heart of Georgia Altamaha Regional Development Commission, an organization located in Eastman, Ga. He assisted 17 counties and 62 cities in his region with various projects, including grants, planning and administration. Often, it required him to be hands-on, and travel became a large part of his life.

“That much interaction with local governments allowed me to hone my skills and learn what my fields of interest really were,” he said. “ I really zeroed in on what my goal was.”

Although he enjoyed launching a comprehensive planning initiative or constructing a grant, Muenger said he never got to see the fruits of his labor. He wanted to see how his work benefitted the communities he assisted, but instead he was always off to another city. He decided, less than two years after college graduation, it might be time to settle down.

Muenger came to Talladega in 2008 as an assistant city manager. It was the kind of work he wanted, but it involved leaving his life behind. He said it looked like a hurdle from the outside, but once he settled in he saw there wasn’t much to jump.

“I relocated away from my comfort zone, my base of support,” he said. “ My family is in Georgia, and it’s where I had all my life experience. But moving to a new city and not knowing anyone other than the handful of people I had interviewed with really gave me the opportunity to throw myself into the work and immerse myself in the community.

“It didn’t take a great deal of time at all to feel at home.”

Muenger worked in the assistant role until 2010, when the Talladega city manager at the time departed. Muenger went through a brief period as interim city manager before being named head of administration in the city. His first task could be seen as another shark tank, but he quickly navigated the waters.

Talladega, he said, had been operating in a deficit for three years when he took over, and the city had completely depleted its fund balance.

“The city couldn’t complete fiscal year with the funding it had, and it was not option to run in the red. There wasn’t enough in the bank to pay for it,” Muenger said. “In a very short period of time, we had to take action.”

Muenger said through careful planning he made a series of tough decisions that included merging departments and modifying staff structures. It set a course for fiscal sovereignty, and since that fiscal year the City of Talladega has operated with a budget surplus every year. The city also undertook $3.5 million in capital improvement projects without borrowing a cent.

On his second-to-last day as Talladega city manager, Thursday, March 19, the city went to the bond market. Talladega received an AA Stable rating, he said, when just four years ago the city wasn’t able to meet its payroll.

As Muenger comes to Pell City, he faces a different situation. Pell City is also preparing to approach the bond market, but it currently boasts a AA bond rating and approximately $10 million in reserves. Muenger said he’s spent much of his transition period becoming familiar with Pell City’s planned expenditures and current projects, and he looks forward to helping the city reach its goals.

“Pell City already has a quality of life that continues to attract people to our area,” he said. “And the same levels of service can be maintained even throughout growth,” he said. “We can work to build a walkable community that people will benefit from, but still enjoy heavy industrial expansion though proper separation.”

Overall, Muenger said it’s his journey to Pell City that’s prepared him for this position — one he’s ready to tackle head-on.

“When I first came [to Talladega], I came as a very young professional. I was not as self-actualized in my career as I am now,” Muenger said. “I had not had a position like that before, and I wasn’t really sure what was expected of me.

“Now I know what to expect and what to do from the first day I’m here.”