YOUR AD HERE »

Energy, municipal backgrounds help McArthur

Mike McKibbin
Post Independent
Stuart McArthur is the new town administrator in Parachute, bringing a combination of public service for municipalities and experience with the energy industry to the position.
Mike McKibbin/Citizen Telegram |

PARACHUTE — For a town that relies heavily on the energy industry for its economic health, Stuart McArthur would seem to be a perfect fit.

The new Parachute town administrator brings a decade of experience in the oil and gas industry in Houston, Texas, to the post, along with a similar amount of experience as a municipal finance director and administrator.

McArthur, 58, assumed the duties in February, after serving as interim administrator since the end of November, when town trustees accepted the resignation of Bob Knight, who had been town administrator for nearly six years. McArthur is being paid an annual salary of $93,000.



“I grew up, so to speak, on the financial side” of municipal government, McArthur said.

After earning his bachelors of science degree at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah, McArthur went on to get a masters degree in business administration from Utah State University in Logan, Utah. His local government experience includes working in Clark County, Wash., and in Colorado as budget officer for the City of Aurora, finance director for Arapahoe County and town administrator in the towns of Watkins and Bennett.



“I got here and found out how great the board and this area of the state is,” McArthur said of what led him to accept the Parachute position on a permanent basis.

Mayor Judy Beasley said the board was very impressed with McArthur’s resume, experience working in other small towns and, most notably, how he performed as interim administrator.

“At the time we hired him as interim, we said he wasn’t being considered for the full-time position and he agreed,” she said. “But he came in and really streamlined some policies and got us on course. He seems well-liked by the people in the community he works with, and we knew what we’d get. We like him.”

McArthur thinks his background uniquely qualifies him to handle the local Parachute business climate.

“I understand the lingo of oil and gas development, what their goals and objectives are in terms of exploration and production,” McArthur said. “I think that can benefit both the industry and the town. I can relate to things on both the public and the private sectors.”

“I agree his oil and gas experience is a real plus,” Beasley said. “He’s knowledgeable and a get-it-done type of person. I think he’ll be very positive for the town.”

Beasley, who did not run for re-election in the Tuesday, April 1, municipal election, added she was sorry she won’t be mayor to see how McArthur performs his duties.

Beasley said the town did not advertise the position after hiring McArthur as interim administrator, and town trustees unanimously approved his taking on the duties full-time.


Support Local Journalism

Support Local Journalism

Readers around Glenwood Springs and Garfield County make the Post Independent’s work possible. Your financial contribution supports our efforts to deliver quality, locally relevant journalism.

Now more than ever, your support is critical to help us keep our community informed about the evolving coronavirus pandemic and the impact it is having locally. Every contribution, however large or small, will make a difference.

Each donation will be used exclusively for the development and creation of increased news coverage.