David Frasher's Biography
I grew up on a farm in Missouri about twenty five miles from Kansas City. Our family members were deeply committed to one another and my values and life skills were enriched through hard work and the love and wisdom of parents, siblings, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. I didn't realized it at the time, but those experiences provided me with the foundation to be a leader and an appreciation for the virtues of service, honor and integrity that would sustain me and guide my actions throughout a career in public service.
After high school, I attended MacMurray College in Jacksonville, Illinois. For me, high school had been somewhat more about participating in sports than about academics, but at MacMurray I quickly developed a passion for learning that is with me still today. I graduated from MacMurray with honors and returned home during the economic recession of 1981. A few months later I landed a job as a police officer with the City of Independence, Missouri. Initially, I intended to remain there for only a couple of years while I sorted out what advanced degree I wanted to pursue and paid off my student loans. However, I found the job to be very rewarding and remained with the department for nearly nine years. I was fortunate to work with some outstanding senior officers and supervisors. My confidence grew, I learned to think on my feet, frequently in a crisis, and I learned what worked and did not work when dealing with people at all levels and in every imaginable scenario.
During my career in law enforcement, I got to know some prosecuting attorneys and judges and they suggested that I consider attending law school. Eventually their suggestions took root and, while I was not certain what I would do with a law degree, I was certain that I wanted more education and that a law degree would provide a very broad range of skills that would be applicable to nearly any profession in which I would be interested. Thereafter, I used all of my leave time at the police department studying for the law school admission test. The decision paid off and my scores were sufficient to gain acceptance at a top twenty law school - Washington University in Saint Louis. The only hitch was how to pay for it. I sold my house, a horse that I owned, and nearly everything but my truck and my dog and, with more student loans, came up with enough to finance the endeavor.
During law school, I worked at the United States Attorney's Office and had a summer job at a local law firm. Law school was a wonderful experience and provided me, not only with knowledge of the law, but with research, writing, and public speaking skills that I may never have developed otherwise. After graduation, I was fortunate to obtain a prestigious judicial clerkship with the Alaska Court of Appeals in Anchorage, Alaska. Serving a one year term for an appellate court was a great experience and the ideal platform from which to take and pass the bar exam.
At the conclusion of my clerkship I opened my own law practice. Several of my family members are small business owners and the idea of making my own way was appealing on many levels. After a few years of practicing law, however, I experienced a longing to return to public service. In my law practice, I was helping one person at a time through a judicial system that, as good as it was, sometimes fell short of making a real difference in the lives of my clients. At about the same time, I was corresponding with a friend and mentor, who was the former City Manager of Colorado Springs. He encouraged me to become a city manager and a few months later I obtained my first job in the profession as the City Administrator of Oak Grove, Missouri. I was excited about my new career because I was convinced that I would be able to make a difference while working in an environment that, at least for me, would be more dynamic and stimulating than helping one person at a time through legal counseling.
Oak Grove was experiencing tremendous growth during my time there and it was all I could do to keep up with the demands. The city's budget more than doubled in three years, I created two new departments (Police and Finance) from the ground up, and the small staff was sometimes inundated with as many as one hundred building permit applications in a single week. Even so, the job was fun, interesting, and invigorating. Toward the end of my service in Oak Grove, the six member board was often divided and the mayor frequently had to break tie votes to keep things moving. Overall, the experience was positive and I will always be grateful to Oak Grove for the opportunity to return to public service as a professional administrator.
My next position was with the City of Ashland, Wisconsin. Ashland was a charming community with a rich history. While Oak Grove was a booming suburb of Kansas City, Ashland was a stand-alone community with little growth, a county seat, a college town, and a full service city offering everything from a municipal library and airport, to a marina and cemetery system. In fact, we sometimes begrudged that there were far more deceased residents in Ashland's state mandated cemeteries, than there were employed people to pay for them. Ashland had experienced a harsh transition from an economy built upon the extraction of natural resources to one of limited manufacturing, medical and regional services, retail, and tourism. It was here that I learned the nuts and bolts of economic development in a community in critical need of jobs. Working for Ashland I began to more fully develop my own style, finding a comfortable balance between embracing the community with enthusiasm, while maintaining enough independence to move on in my career when the time came. It was still difficult to leave but after four years the challenges had largely evaporated and I was ready to advance to a larger city, preferably one in which the dynamics of growth management would provide new challenges and opportunities for professional development.
Those challenges came when I accepted the position of City Manager for the City of Grants Pass, Oregon. The first three years in Grants Pass were exciting, productive, and enjoyable. I worked with, recruited, and/or developed an outstanding team of executive staff while the city grew from 25,000 to nearly 35,000 residents. The council and staff reached new benchmarks for teamwork and cooperation, the city was on the move, citizen participation was healthy, our finances secure, and we were winning both public confidence and national recognition for everything from our new interactive website, to our public safety services, including the only CALEA accredited emergency dispatch center in the State of Oregon. Additionally, we were managing growth with a host of innovative policies to encourage infill developments, recover the costs of growth impacts, and ensure that our infrastructure and staff development could keep pace with the demands.
Prior to my arrival, Grants Pass had annexed a number of areas in which residents were opposed to annexation. As a result, some were dismayed about the brisk pace of growth and the climate was ripe for political change. That change came in January of 2009 when several new council members came aboard. Elected on a platform of controlling growth, the new members concentrated their efforts on making changes in key staff positions, including the City Manager. As a result, my efforts to work with the new group were unsuccessful and I eventually resigned in August of 2009. The community reacted strongly, recalling several members shortly after my resignation. The Council, unquestionably, had the authority to make changes in the City Manager position. However, in this instance, the way in which it was handled raised concerns in the community and that led to additional political change.
While the conclusion of my tenure came at a time of political turmoil that may be inherent within the Grants Pass area, the overall experience there was extremely positive and successful. The public/private partnerships, intergovernmental relationships, economic development efforts, and successful labor and media relations were among the best of my career and provided me with an outstanding record of achievement that I believe will enable me to better serve in my next position as a professional city manager.
I learned a great deal while working for the City of Grants Pass. I have matured in my knowledge and skill within my profession, and am fortunate to have a long list of excellent references in Grants Pass, including the Mayor, Council President, former Council members, co-workers, and many other community leaders.
