By Susan Motander
With the city manager search being the only item on the agenda for the closed meeting of the City Council on Tuesday evening, some hoped for an announcement at the regular, open meeting of council. No such announcement was made; instead the council appointed Monrovia Fire Chief Brad Dover as the interim city manager while the search continues.
Dover started with Monrovia Fire and Rescue in 1994 as a fire cadet and became chief in 2016, having worked his way up the ranks. Under his leadership the department has been upgraded to a class 2 operation which means the Monrovia Fire Department is in the top 3% of fire departments across the United States.
He has been married to his wife, Anne for 21 years. They have 16-year old twins, Blake and Ella. His bachelor’s degree is in occupational studies from Cal State Long Beach. This November he will graduate as an executive fire officer from the National Fire Academy in Maryland.
“We are grateful that an individual of Brad’s quality and character is willing to step up and take on the additional responsibilities of serving as Monrovia’s Interim City Manager,” said Mayor Tom Adams. “The City Council has every confidence that Brad will be a terrific steward of our organization and community, and that Monrovia will have continued success during this transitional period.”
“I am extremely humbled to have the opportunity to serve the City of Monrovia in this interim capacity,” said Dover. “What an honor it is to work with so many dedicated and hardworking people that are all committed to making Monrovia the best place that it can be.”
As one of the few completely full-service cities in the San Gabriel Valley, Dover will be supported in his new role by a staff of around 300 full-time employees.
Asked if he was concerned about the Fire Department while splitting his time between his department and the city manager role, Dover said he was confident his department had strong leaders and would function well. “I’m going to have to get used to wearing suits rather than my uniform,” he quipped.
