Ryann Juden

Ryann Juden was named the City Manager of the City of North Las Vegas in April 2018. He first joined the City in September 2013 as Chief of Staff, and was later promoted to Assistant City Manager in August 2015.

Dr. Juden joined the city during an unprecedented period of financial and political crisis. The city was experiencing significant problems on multiple fronts including: a dramatic decrease in state and local revenues; substantial short- and long-term budget deficits; rapidly decreasing municipal bond ratings; the threat of being dissolved and taken over through state receivership; significant legal battles with labor groups; and ongoing conflicts with local governments and other external stakeholders.

To address these diverse and systemic problems, Ryann was tasked with developing and implementing a comprehensive multi-year plan to fix the city. The strategy focused on attracting economic development to create a new tax base, restructuring city departments vital to economic development, stabilizing and fortifying critical city services, streamlining government operations for better services and efficiencies, and repairing relationships with internal and external stakeholders.

Ryann immediately began mending relationships with local governments and state regulatory bodies, resolving the protracted union conflicts, restructuring the city’s economic development department to attract and grow a new tax base, and helping to resolve the city’s long-term financial challenges. Dr. Juden developed specific plans to successfully solve each of these challenges and worked as a member of the city’s executive team to implement these objectives. In 2014, he developed the strategy and plan used to successfully resolve and settle the city’s long-term labor disputes. He also helped implement a comprehensive plan to restructure city government with operational and organizational changes.

Under Dr. Juden’s leadership, the city successfully passed its legislative priorities during the 2015 and 2017 Legislative Sessions. His efforts resulted in the passage of legislation critical to the city’s long-term financial future, which has been welcomed by bond analysts on Wall Street who credited its passage with improving the city’s bond rating.

Following the 28th Special Legislative Session of the Nevada Legislature in September 2014, Ryann creatively identified how the tools newly created by the Legislature to bring Tesla to Northern Nevada could be appropriated and used by the city to attract economic development opportunities in Southern Nevada. Ryann developed the strategy to use the new economic development tools created by the Legislature to attract new businesses needed to induce infrastructure development in 18,000 vacant acres of land in the Apex industrial area. These efforts to attract new industry to Nevada resulted in the Governor convening the 29th Special Session of the Nevada Legislature in late 2015 where the state created several new economic incentive tools to attract new businesses to the state. Ryann oversaw the implementation of an aggressive strategy to seek and find new businesses that have expanded the city’s tax base and are key components of turning the city’s finances around.

During Ryann’s tenure as a member of the city’s executive team, the city has balanced its FY 2014-15 budget without layoffs or service reductions for the first time in 7 years; saw its bond rating increase dramatically and its outlook change from negative, to stable, to positive; reduce the 7-year budget deficit from $152 million in FY 2013-14 to $74.4 million in FY 2014-15 to $23 million in FY 2015-16 and finally eliminated the deficit completely in 2017.

Ryann has a BA in Political Science from Brigham Young University, a Juris Doctor from The University of Iowa College of Law, and a PhD in Public Affairs from the University of Nevada Las Vegas. He has extensive federal and state public policy experience and has taught college as an adjunct professor at the College of Southern Nevada and University of Nevada Las Vegas. As an Eagle Scout, he remains active in Boy Scouts, enjoys cycling and coaches three local youth recreational soccer teams.

Ryann is active in the community where he serves on the Executive Board of Directors for Three Square Food Bank, was appointed by the Legislature to serve on the Clark County School District Community Budget Advisory Committee, was appointed by the Nevada Board of Regents to serve on the College of Southern Nevada President Search Committee, CCSD Superintendent’s Equity and Access Commission, and previously served as a member, Vice-Chair and Chairman of the City of North Las Vegas Park and Recreation Advisory Board from 2007-2011.

A transplant from Cape Girardeau, Missouri, Ryann has been married to his wife Debbie, a fourth generation Nevadan, for 23 years and they have four active boys and one little girl who keeps everyone and everything in line!