Oregon City introduces five finalists for manager

Currrent manager Larry Patterson retires in March

By Matthew Graham

The Oregon City News, Mar 4, 2010

Mark Hoppen

Hoppen started as a teacher and basketball coach before entering the public sector. He served as a development services manager in Puyallup, Wash., a city with a similar population and historic nature as Oregon City, and then was city manager in Gig Harbor for 16 years.

While in Gig Harbor he said he expanded and improved infrastructure, expanding from one city park to 17, building a sidewalk system and more. He also saw the city grow significantly, as the population doubled and the annual budget went from $4 million to $40 million in his tenure.

“I know what it’s like to work in a place that has a history and that wants to grow gracefully,” he said at a community forum last week.

Craig Ward

Craig Ward was the assistant city manager and then city manager of SeaTac, Wash., a city of about 26,000 people that’s home to Seattle’s airport.

He started as a county planning and building director in Washington before becoming the principal planner in SeaTac. He led the city as the greater metropolitan area pushed to get light rail to the airport.

“A big part of what I’ve done is to work with these other agencies to accomplish the city’s goals,” he said. “It’s nice to talk about how we can grow regionally, but the people on city council are concerned with how can we improve safety, how can we fill pot holes.”

He also said he keeps a long-term vision.

“Most people are focusing on what’s happening today, even as a city manager you get tied down with what’s this year’s budget,” he said. “But you really have got to keep an attention focused 10 or 15 years out.”

David Frazier

Frazier started his career as a police officer, then served in the court of appeals in Alaska.

He served as a city manger outside of Kansas City for three years and then in Ashland, Wisc., where he said he learned “fiscal discipline.” Still, with the help of the state’s senior senator, who was a local, he grabbed $13 million in earmarks and built new sidewalks and parks.

In Grants Pass, a town of about 35,000 people, he again dealt with funding issues.

He said the city didn’t have system development charges for things they should have and the fees the city did have weren’t indexed for inflation, leaving much of the city underserved by police.

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