From Portland Afoot

Craig Prosser (photo courtesy City of Tigard)

Craig Prosser represents Clackamas County on the TriMet board of directors. He was named by Gov. John Kitzhaber in October 2011 to fill the seat vacated by Hakeem Olanrewaju. He also filled Olanrewaju's seat on the TriMet finance committee.

Prior to his retirement, Prosser had spent six years as city manager, six years as Tigard's finance director and a five-year term on the city council in Lake Oswego, where he lives. He spent a total of 35 years in public service.

At the time of his appointment, TriMet General Manager Neil McFarlane cited Prosser's experience "navigating a government agency through times of economic uncertainty."

His TriMet email is prosserc@trimet.org.

[edit] Support for MAX expansion

Prosser, who had retired as Tigard's city manager in July, said at the time of his retirement that his dream was to one day -- using his walker, he joked -- board a new MAX line through Southwest Portland, Tigard, Tualatin, King City and Sherwood, the culmination of TriMet's Southwest Corridor Plan.

Prosser described the MAX line as the best way to preserve the relatively large, quiet residential lots common in the southwest Metro area, because it would allow dense development in urban centers rather than requiring housing to be more evenly distributed across the region.

[edit] Career

As Tigard's finance director, Prosser oversaw the city’s two-step bond rating upgrade from A1 to AA and was, according to TriMet, "instrumental in putting together a consortium of 24 Oregon cities to conduct the state’s (and possibly the nation’s) first joint audit of a utility franchise (Portland General Electric), recovering $3.2 million for the consortium cities."

Before coming to Tigard, he served over six years as Metro's financial planning manager, supervising its financial planning division, developing the annual operating budget and instituting Metro’s first five-year capital improvement plan.

Prosser also served on the board of directors at the Three Rivers Land Conservancy from 2000 to 2004, including two years as their treasurer.

[edit] Appointment vote

Prosser's nomination was confirmed by the state Senate on a party-line vote of 16-11, with every Democrat voting in favor, 11 Republicans voting against and three Republicans absent.

Rules Committee staffer Erin Seiler said in January 2012 that it was the only contested TriMet board appointment since she joined the legislature in 2008.

[edit] Political activity

In 2010, according to Oregon's campaign finance database, Prosser contributed $100 to the campaign of Bob Stacey, an environmentally oriented candidate for Metro council.