By Parker Leavitt
The Arizona Republic
A recovering economy and healthier municipal budget have put Gilbert in a position to open its doors for more hiring this year, bringing about 75 new faces to Town Hall.
While many of those hires were made to fill existing vacancies, several others filled newly-created positions, ranging from purchasing manager to economic-development administrator.
Of about a dozen new positions announced last summer, about half have been filled, with the remaining hires expected in early 2013, officials said.
The more-upbeat financial climate comes in stark contrast to the budget struggles that many communities — including Gilbert — faced during the recession just a few years ago.
Threats of furloughs or layoffs have since been replaced by plans to revise the town’s employee-pay structure and make “strategic investments” by adding new personnel.
sGilbert Budget Administrator Dawn Irvine said the town’s history of frugal budgeting helped it navigate through the recession, a fact that was not lost on the major credit-rating agencies.
