Wes Pierson's first day as Frisco city manager is scheduled to be Aug. 2.
Following a nationwide search, Wes was the chosen leader to succeed Frisco's first (and only) city manager, George Purefoy, who retired on June 30 after nearly 35 years of service. In the interim, Henry Hill, deputy city manager, is acting as city manager.
“Frisco is a phenomenal city. I’m going to start by being focused on learning from our people and understanding how our culture works," says Wes. "Frisco is already extremely well managed. But I’m prepared to provide a new perspective and balance it with the city’s strong foundation to then prepare Frisco for its future as a world-class city."
He says his personal impressions of Frisco are that "it's the special place where people want to be." Having lived in Texas since 2009, he says he and his family previously visited relatives who live in Frisco. As coach of his daughter's basketball team, he adds that the team played at FieldHouseUSA Frisco.
Wes has more than 13 years of city management experience, including the last seven years as city manager in the Town of Addison. He also served the cities of Corpus Christi and Allen, Texas.
Addison's organizational and strategic approach is grounded in always caring first about its people and customers, he says, while delivering high levels of service in kind and results-oriented ways. "I get the sense that Frisco's core principles are similar."
Wes surmises his predecessor, George, summarizes it best: "Frisco is amazing due to the people who drove the city's financial investments, which brought big dividends. Those wise investments netted clear results."
The candidate pool included 55 applicants, from 17 states, before being narrowed to four finalists. The selection process was facilitated by Pennsylvania-based Affion Public. Finalists toured the city, met with city department directors, the current city manager and community stakeholders. The final candidates engaged in two rounds of in-person interviews with city council members, which included sharing a presentation about their vision for Frisco’s future.
Frisco Mayor Jeff Cheney says, "We knew this was the biggest decision we would ever make as a council. In fact, we knew it could be one of the most important decisions in the history of Frisco. We promised to find a city manager who aligned with our culture, priorities and vision for the city’s future. We couldn’t be more impressed with the collective caliber of talent and experience in the finalist pool. But we’re confident and unanimous in our support for Wes Pierson stepping into the role of Frisco’s next city manager.”
Wes, who is fluent in Spanish, has a master's degree in public administration from George Mason University. He earned a bachelor's degree in international studies at Brigham Young University. He holds a certificate in public finance from Texas Tech University, completed the Leading Educating and Developing Program (LEAD) from University of Virginia, and finished the Public Executive Institute Program at the University of Texas at Austin. He also spent three years as a project manager at the International City/County Management Association in Washington, DC.
Among his most recent credits are developing long-range strategic plans for economic development, transportation, parks and recreation, trails, open space and streetscape beautification; creating comprehensive asset management plans and long-range financial planning models to prioritize investments in infrastructure; leading reviews of development-related regulations and policies to transition a ‘growth’ community to one of redevelopment/renewal; and achieving AAA bond ratings from both Standard & Poor’s and Moody’s, an elite accomplishment by 11 Texas cities, including Frisco.
Frisco’s contract to Wes: $285,000 starting salary; annual merit increases in line with percentage raises for city employees; performance bonus not to exceed $12,000 in any fiscal year; an annual car allowance; 7% participation in retirement system; 32 personal leave days per year; two weeks vacation; $15,000 in moving assistance.