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Craig hires new city manager

Lauren Blair







— The City of Craig will welcome a new city manager next month after Craig City Council offered the job to Mike Foreman of Celina, Texas. The council interviewed three finalists Friday for the position.

“The city council’s excited to have him on board,” said Craig Mayor Ray Beck. “It was unanimous.”

Foreman brings with him more than 30 years of experience in local government, most recently serving as city manager of Celina, Texas for five years. Before that, he spent nearly 20 years with the City of Grand Prairie, Texas, serving as assistant to the city manager from 2008 to 2011.



“He’s got some background in helping cities look into the future and stimulating the local economy,” said City of Craig Finance Director Bruce Nelson. “And he’s also got a lot of energy. He can get you enthused real quick… I think he’ll be really good with the local groups in town.”

True to Nelson’s description, Foreman accepted the position after negotiating his contract Friday evening, and spent the rest of the weekend familiarizing himself with Craig and surrounding areas.



“We kind of hit the ground running and on Saturday, I met some police officers and sergeants and went out riding with them,” Foreman said. “I got to know some of the people in the community and I was really impressed with how well everyone gets along and how great the community is.”

Foreman was already acquainted with the area through his boys’ competitive baseball teams, which brought him to Steamboat Springs on several occasions for tournaments.

“That was one of the reasons when the position opened up, I applied,” he said. “We kind of fell in love with the area.”

During his time as city manager of Celina, about an hour north of Dallas, the city grew from 5,000 people to over 12,000 with a projected growth to 30,000 within the next five years, according to Foreman’s resume.

Beck offered Foreman a start date of Feb. 1, but after learning more about what’s ahead for Craig, Foreman offered to get started the first week of January.

His wife, Christine, and two boys, Michael, 15, and Luke, 13, will join him in the summer. Foreman also has a daughter, Megan, 24.

The two other finalists considered for the position were Kathleen Sickles, town administrator for Cedaredge, Colo. and Christopher Philbrick, currently an independent management consultant in Dumfries, Virginia.

Contact Lauren Blair at 970-875-1795 or lblair@CraigDailyPress.com or follow her on Twitter @LaurenBNews.


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