DARRELL TALBERT, CITY MANAGER – CITY OF CORONA
In December of 2006, Darrell Talbert completed serving his 12th year and third term on the Corona City Council. His elected service began in 1994 and offered him the opportunity to serve as Mayor in 1998, 2002 and 2005. During his time in office, he was best known for his tireless service and visionary ideas as part of the City Council Infrastructure and Economic Development Committees and is credited for much of Corona’s regional development dominance in the Inland Empire over the last decade.
Shortly after Talbert’s graduation from California State University, San Bernardino in 1989, he co-founded Odyssey Group, Inc. and Odyssey Publications, Inc. The Odyssey Companies became the industry leaders in the autograph and memorabilia fields and were routinely quoted in all areas of media here and abroad. In July of 2000, Talbert and his business partner sold their interests in the Odyssey companies, to Collectors Universe (Nasdaq: CLCT), as part of a successful IPO (Initial Public Offering) for the newly merged collectibles companies. In his continued quest to further his knowledge Talbert graduated from University of Redlands with his MBA in October 2005 with honors.
In January of 2007, Talbert accepted a position with the City of Corona as the Deputy Director of Community Development and in February of 2008 was promoted to Director for the Corona Redevelopment Agency. In this role, he led the Redevelopment and Economic Development efforts of the City of Corona as well as help the community maintain there regional dominance as a true economic engine for the County, if not the State. In 2011, Talbert was promoted to Administrative Services Director, overseeing the Corona Housing Authority, Corona Successor Agency, Human Resources, and Risk Management in addition to Economic Development. Recognizing his dedication to best practices in all things at all times, Talbert was promoted to Assistant City Manager in 2014.
In April of 2015, the Corona City Council appointed Talbert to the position of City Manager. His prior experience as a business owner, elected official, and member of staff combined with being a life-long resident of the City brings a fresh perspective to the top leadership position. Since his appointment, Talbert has showed his dedication to the residents by implementing a zero-based budget format presented in a user-friendly format; established a Community Information Division in an effort to keep residents informed, educated, and included; improved efficiencies through the integration of technology as part of a continued move towards a data driven organization; and increased transparency with the launch of OpenDataCorona.com – a financial transparency portal. Internally, Talbert has eliminated information silos between departments and has increased collaboration through the implementation of mid-management level working groups as well as created a culture of excellent customer service by deploying the “We are Here to make Good Things Happen for Other People” campaign. Talbert resides in the City of Corona with his wife and daughter.