Drain's hire will head to Plano City Council on Jan. 13 for final approval. All eight council members spoke positively of Drain's candidacy after meeting with him earlier this week.
In addition to his time in Amarillo, Drain had a long career with the city of Plano. He served for 10 years beginning in 2006 as assistant police chief under former chief and current Deputy City Manager Greg Rushin. This followed a career in the Plano department that began in 1994, according to a city news release.
Drain also spent time as interim police chief for the city of Murphy.
In his comments to council members Jan. 6, Drain highlighted the importance of police officer retention and strong community relations. He stressed the importance of working with local homeowners associations to communicate with residents.
"Police officers aren't going to be able to do it [alone]," Drain said. "We have to make sure our citizens are trained and are motivated to protect themselves, protect their property [and] look out for their own neighborhoods. And in my view, that is the key reason why Plano has such a low crime rate."
The city recruited Drain in a process that came together quickly in recent weeks, City Manager Mark Israelson said. Drain was not one of the three finalists for the police chief opening announced in November. One of these candidates withdrew from consideration, Israelson said. The other two were not offered the position.
Israelson said Drain’s fit with the community and the organization was a strong factor in his consideration.
