David Johnston is learning his way around Maple Valley.

Johnston started as city manager on April 14 and said he realized after some initial talks with the City Council following his arrival from Illinois that he would need to spend some time getting to know the place.

“I have to get the lay of the land,” Johnston said. “Thats going to be my main priority for the first three months, get to know the community networks that I need to know, get to know neighboring jurisdictions and not just cities but special districts like the fire department and the water district.”

Johnston knows he also has to get out into Maple Valley so he can be seen and heard and one of his first community events is the opening of lake fishing season Saturday at the Maple Valley Fishing Derby.

Also on his to do list is to “get my arms around the issues” that the City Council is facing.

“There are some that pre-date my time here but the resolution is going to come during my time here,” he said. “Maple Valley is not a rural community in Washington. It’s a suburban community. It’s had quite a 10, 12 year run.”

Johnston will have quite a bit to tackle once he does get a handle on his job and the community but he believes his experience in state and local government as well as in the non-profit sector will help him as city manager.

A native of Indiana, Johnston is the youngest of five boys, and he holds a bachelor’s degree from Notre Dame and a master’s in public administration from Indiana University.

After college he worked in state transportation for Indiana first in the Transportation Planning Office and later in Office of Transportation Safety after all of Indiana’s transportation departments were merged together.

Following that, Johnston decided he wanted to give back to his faith. Raised Catholic he was drawn to a position with the diocese in Gary, Ind., where he was the director of stewardship.

His goal there was to increase volunteerism and giving, but the bishop directed him to motivate parishioners to give from the heart, rather than out of a sense of obligation to “build a spirit of giving.”

After two and a half years with the diocese he moved on to public health care where he worked with four medical practices that provided care to underserved populations such as the homeless and the impoverished.

“That was quite an eye opening experience for me because a lot of those populations are hidden,” Johnston said. “It was a fascinating three years doing that.”

Not wanting to go back into state government but with an eye toward local government Johnston left health care to become the first village administrator for Coal City, Ill., where he said “we grew together.”

After he left Coal City, Johnston said it took him some time to find his next job, but he landed as village administrator in Rantoul, Ill.

“What primarily drew me to that was the challenge of how do you incorporate the fact that the Air Force base was closed … when for 75 years that Air Force base was the community’s identity,” he said. “When the base closed it was a hit of huge proportions; even 11 years later when I started the grieving process was still in place.”

Johnston points to that experience as critical to building his toolbox as a municipal manager.

“I will always be indebted to that opportunity because of the level of intergovernmental relations and skills I had to pull out of my hat,” he said. “I will always value my time there because of the experience I got there.”

Johnston left Rantoul last year and said when he was on the job hunt again he sat down with his wife, whom he met while working for the diocese in Gary, and put together a list of must-haves for his next position.

He wanted to go somewhere that “recognizes the value of a city manager position.”

“No. 2, has challenges … that stretches my talents and abilities,” he said. “My wife and I were looking for a place to call home, preferably in a metropolitan area. When you start looking for a position like that those are highly competitive.”

Being close to Seattle appealed to Johnston given that he has family in the Northwest.

“The other thing that drew us to Maple Valley is that you’re close enough to the city to enjoy what it has to offer but also in your backyard you have wonderful recreation opportunities,” he said. “This area just has a lot of neat things, like the Maple Valley Arts Council. I hope people appreciate that asset to the community.”

He also thinks he’s got a good foundation to deal with the challenges Maple Valley will face thanks to the quality people that surround him in City Hall.

“Another thing that I’m impressed by is that there is high quality staff here,” Johnston said. “One thing that’s nice is I don’t see where I am going to have to deal with personnel issues. The people here want to work for the citizens of Maple Valley and that’s one heck of a spirit to have.”

Johnston said he believes in the importance of transparency in local government and public input into decision making processes. This will be critical as the city has a number of decisions to make in the near future in planning for the long term.

“The economy as it is will probably be a benefit for this community in its young history because it provides an opportunity to step back and take a breath and be ready for when the upswing occurs,” he said. “You have to be a player as a suburban community in the networks that are out there. Opportunities will fall in your lap because you’re a different market … and at the same time have an open government and transparency.”