Ken Frank is Newsmaker of 2010

Since his 66th birthday when Ken Frank announced his retirement as city manager, he has been the talk of the town. Who would replace him? Who could replace him? How would he be replaced? His contributions to the city were lauded. His flaws — he was known to lose his temper occasionally, and he was sometimes abrupt with staff — were dissected; his skills applauded.

An intensely private man, Frank spent almost half of his life in a very visible job. For 31 years, he maneuvered the city — and some said the City Council — through good times and bad.

And there were some really bad times: the county bankruptcy, landslides, fire, the dreadful loss of lives to AIDS, state raids on local revenue to balance its own budget, and near mutinies in the police, fire and marine safety departments.

“We were lucky to have Ken Frank,” former Councilman Paul Freeman said. “We haven’t always agreed, but he is the best politician this city has ever had.”

Through all the ups and downs, Frank publicly took the hit when things went wrong and gave the council credit when things went right. Whenever possible, he avoided the limelight and always declined to have his photograph taken. No one should be surprised that he was a skillful poker player, but his wicked sense of humor sometimes caught people unawares.

Reading his columns published last year in the Coastline Pilot on his take of the city’s 10 top accomplishments during his tenure as city manager, one might be led to believe he was an observer, not a participant and certainly not a prime mover.

Frank’s choice for the top achievement was the acquisition of hundreds of acres of open space, but he was rarely credited with environmental sensitivity. His support for the goats as a means to clear hillsides of flammable vegetation and for the construction of Montage Resort & Spa did not resonate with environmentalists.

However, at the last meeting at which Frank sat on the dais as city manager, Mayor Pro Tem Jane Egly said she had attended an open space dedication with him.

“It was symbolic,” Egly said. “No one is better than Ken at acquiring open space for Laguna.”

Praise has been heaped on Frank since he announced his retirement in April.

Former Councilwoman Kathleen Blackburn called his retirement the end of an era.

“And it makes me sad,” she said.

Blackburn spearheaded the fundraising for a farewell gift for Frank, a painting by Scott Moore.

Contributors to the purchase of the commissioned painting included members of the arts and business communities, community, environmentalists, Realtors, architects, Ken’s bridge and poker playing buddies, City Hall department heads, city managers from other communities, former and sitting council members, friends and admirers. The range of donors was indicative of the widespread appreciation for Frank’s contributions to Laguna, Blackburn said.

“I want to personally thank Ken for his service to Laguna Beach,” Councilwoman Elizabeth Pearson said. “He has always had our backs and he always put the community before himself.”

Frank’s financial wizardry and institutional knowledge is legendary, but perhaps his most useful skill was the ability to think on his feet.

He would sit and listen to the wrangling at council meetings, fingers tented and then would offer a suggestion that combatants could live with, if not love.

Asked what he considered his top skill, Frank said: “Well, I am pretty organized.”

But even in retirement, Frank’s leadership will continue to be invaluable. It was his notion when the city was flush to create a special fund to keep the city solvent in the economic downturn.

The Revenue Smoothing Fund has made up for the losses in revenue that otherwise might have required layoffs and cuts in service.

A book could be written about Frank’s influence on Laguna. But until Dec. 13, 2010, his official biography read:

City Manager in Laguna Beach from September 1979 to present.

Assistant to City Manager in Berkeley 1975-1979

Staff assistant at League of California Cities 1971-1975

Master’s degree in public administration from U.C. Berkeley 1971

Bachelor’s degree in economics and political science, San Francisco State College

Brief, understated and typical of the man whose contributions to Laguna made his retirement one of the most important events of the 2010.