Meet the new boss; Truc Dever takes the helm at City Hall

By JIM KRAUSE, Contributing Writer

Truc Dever – Biddeford’s new city manager – took over the helm at City Hall just a few weeks ago. She sat down with us for a one-on-one interview and happily answered a wide range of questions about her background, hobbies and management style.

Before taking on her new job in Biddeford, Dever served as the public works director in Kirkland, Washinton, a Seattle suburb.

We hear that you are a self-proclaimed Connect Four champion.

(Laughs) Yes! I love social time with good friends and backyard parties; and sometimes you bring out the board games.”

My mother was a schoolteacher, and I remember one of her first-grade kids with a similar name and it made me curious, are you familiar with any of the origins or meanings of your name at all?

“So Truc is short for Truc Mai, and Truc is a type of bamboo while Mai is a type of flower [apricot blossom] which normally appears around the Lunar New Year.  Bamboo symbolizes strength while Mai adds a little more of a delicate touch to it.  Though I have also gone by a few nicknames like 4×4, Mack truck and all sorts of things.”

You made the move here with your husband and your dogs. Are they acclimating to the East Coast?

“I think so. My husband and I moved here with our two French Bulldogs.  And I can say that we adopted them before they became known as America’s favorite breed, long before Lady Gaga’s dogs were dognapped at gunpoint, before they got really popular so I can say I fell in love with the breed before it became super popular.  They’re old boys, but they still think they are puppies (Laughs).

Hobbies or vices?

“I am an outdoors person, I love paddling on the water, kayaking, I’m a huge hiker.  My husband and I did a lot of backpacking as well, off-roading with the Jeep, just all the outdoors stuff.  We do also like the arts and music.  I would say we are pretty well rounded in our interests.

If New England is playing the Seahawks in the Superbowl, which jersey are you wearing?

“Seahawks! (pounds on her desk)  I know it’s not gonna fly here, I met with all of the firefighters, I get it, but Seahawks all the way!”

What is it about Biddeford that brought you here?

“My husband and I have been very fortunate. We have travelled all over the country as well as around the world.  When we came out here to Maine years ago, we just fell in love with it.  We both love the outdoors, the history, the people and the nature in Maine so when we decided some years ago to buy a place to vacation, we chose a camp in central Maine. 

“We knew that we wanted to retire out here and with my husband working remotely when this job opportunity came up, we decided to jump at it.  We have our camp up north, but we also just purchased a home here in Biddeford, we are invested in this community.

Your work experience includes job in the media. Was that your original plan in life or was it a basis for what you were eventually aiming for?

“When you’re in your youth, and you are pursuing the job options out there, you sometimes find opportunities that come along and change your path.  I worked as a news reporter, a news producer, a news editor on an assignment desk and had the good fortune to work with some really amazing and talented people covering some hard-hitting news. 

“I worked in San Diego and Los Angeles, and it gave me some exceptional experience on the communications side of things.  At some point, I realized how different and challenging the lifestyle is.  You work long hours, holidays and weekends and it’s a tough schedule. 

“At some point, I decided to make the pivot to the public sector.  I started off working as a public information officer, then moved to director of communications for a large public agency.

“I realized I enjoyed working for the community, working for a bigger cause and so I pursued my master’s degree in Public Administration and work in executive management.”

Kirkland’s population is about four times larger than Biddeford.  Kirkland’s budget is about $1.1 billion biennial compared to Biddeford’s roughly $100 million (municipal and school).  The two cities are quite different, with Kirkland being considerably more modern and populated.  What is it about Biddeford that brought you here?

“You know, I wouldn’t say it was so different.  I think the principles and values of those that live and work in Biddeford are not so dissimilar from Kirkland.  We are experiencing the same challenges here. 

“Kirkland was a smaller community with waterfronts and open areas that just exploded in growth.  It became more attractive to industry and tech sector companies.  With that comes people, and the need for housing.  The city staff were trying to deal with the growth with limited resources and trying to look at infrastructure and the challenges that come along with it. 

“Here in Biddeford. we are faced with the same things, a growing city with limited resources and expanding issues requiring study and action.  In the end, I feel that there is a lot I can bring to Biddeford with my experience dealing with the growth, the unhoused community, and with the infrastructure.”

When your predecessor left the office, many residents felt as if the city went backwards from where it started under his management.  There are still many questions about his 10-year tenure, and those questions are probably going to linger for a while. 

What do you feel you bring to the office that will assure Biddeford residents that the city is back on an even keel?

When I interviewed for the position and I spoke to council, obviously I didn’t know all the history, I just knew what I could bring to the table.  I feel that council chose me for this position because of what I bring to the table. 

“I operate with transparency, honesty, integrity, compassion;  these are principles that I live by.  This is what the city needs and what the staff need.  I learned a long time ago from my mentors that what I should lead by is to make sure that I am serving this community and do what is in the best interest of this community, the people I serve, and the people I work with.

“It’s not about individual needs or individual power or authority or whatever else.  As a public servant, I am here to do what is in the best interest of this community and here to serve the council that is elected by the community members.

“Today we are trying to move past what has happened and we don’t want to make the same mistakes.  We are looking at recruitment and retention, figuring out why do people stay, why do they want to come work here. 

“I operate with transparency, honesty,
integrity, and compassion; 
these are principles that I live by”

— Truc Dever

Biddeford is facing several controversial issues, and public confidence is low. We are seeing high employee turnover, overdue audits and questions regarding several development projects.

“My job right now is to figure out the lay of the land.  We have a governing body in council.  They have deliberated, made decisions and made policy.  My job is to carry out and operationalize those policy decisions. 

“If there are things that are within my purview in terms of contracts, these are the things that I am very quickly trying to come up to speed on.  My job isn’t to push back on our governing body, I’m here to support them.  The comprehensive plan has just been posted on the city’s website, and I would encourage everybody to look at it.

There are also two very important bonds that will be on the ballot in November.  First is the combined sewer overflow project and second is the recreation bond. These are important issues and it is important for the community to make their decisions on them.  It’s our job as government to “information share” and get the word out there.”

Homelessness is a growing problem throughout the country, and in Biddeford we see it on almost every major street and in every public space.  Is Biddeford dropping the ball somewhere, and are we losing both residential and commercial opportunities because of it?

“What I am learning as I am delving deep into this with staff is there is a lot of effort happening, and most residents aren’t going to see all the internal workings of it. 

“We have a very active General Assistance program, and we have two coordinators out of the police department that work with people with substance abuse and with people with behavioral health issues.  There is a program we are working on internally that we will be rolling out in the coming months to assist from an interdepartmental and interagency approach.

“We need to look at solutions instead of pushing people across the river or across the train tracks.  It’s going to be an effort that requires intense cooperation and to solve the problem we have to put resources behind it.  And yes, that might mean some property tax dollars would have to go towards it.  We look at every grant possible out there, partnerships with non-profits and churches, and whatever we can do.” 

Winter is coming, which will bring the dreaded parking bans in Biddeford.  What can the city and residents do to make it easier and less stressful overall? 

“When the community was developed for the mills, it wasn’t a “master plan community” and that leaves us with very narrow roads, especially in the downtown area.  We need these bans during snow events for the safety of our public works staff. 

“This is an old city and parking is an issue.  There isn’t even enough parking here at City Hall for our own staff.  There just isn’t enough parking in general in the area and it’s something that we have to tackle. 

“I believe in solutions over problems, so bring some ideas.  What can we do to make the garage more accessible during inclement weather?  I don’t have the answer now, but we have to come up with solutions.”

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Jim Krause is a freelance writer and Biddeford resident.

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