Mayor, city of Frisco

As if his name wasn't suitable enough for the job, Frisco Mayor Maher Maso's commitment to the community has made him an integral part of the city's progress.

Maso got a taste of community service outreach in the early 1990s, and now he's arguably one of the most recognized people in the city.

Maso has served on the Frisco City Council since 2000, was named "Frisco Citizen of the Year" by the Frisco Chamber of Commerce in 2005 and first elected mayor in 2008.

Did you foresee Frisco's major growth?

Yes and no. You never really can expect everything that comes with that. I moved to Frisco in 1992, and right when I moved in, it started growing rapidly. It's kind of funny when you think about it. [The population] used to double every two years, then double every four years as the population got bigger. We are used to the growth, I'm used to the growth, but you never really get comfortable with it. That's not in a bad way. It's always exciting. Every day brings something new.

Why did you get involved with Frisco government?

I first got involved with my HOA in 1993, and it was because I didn't like one of their rules—you could say I was an activist. I'd never really had that kind of involvement before. I became president of the HOA, and you start serving people and being asked to serve in different ways. Once I became the HOA president, the school district, for example, asked me to be on their technology committee. The more I did, the more I enjoyed it and I think the more people liked what I was doing.

I really never had a goal to be on council or to be mayor. ... It was more service oriented.

What is the reason for recognitions of citizens at council meetings?

It's absolutely an important part of the meeting, and not just the meeting. I go to the schools; I'm out there with the kids. I think that recognizing those that make an impact, make a difference, is very important. That is how Frisco is built. We need to reward those that change the community for the better.

It's really about recognizing those that make a difference. Once you touch their lives, they touch other lives. There is example after example of that. Frisco is built by those people. It's really who we are.

What are the most important issues Frisco faces?

I'm very confident of our master plan. We are prepared for growth. Through our work with the city council and partners, we are building a very sustainable city. ... I'm confident about our success and the direction we're going. What is really important to me is to keep the community together. That's how we get stuff done, is the partnerships and everybody working together. There's a lot of outside forces and special interest groups that obviously have their own agenda. I think it's critical to keep our approach. For example, I view our council and myself as business oriented and problem solving. If we just stay away from politics, stay business oriented and problem solving, we'll continue to be successful.

What is your vision for Frisco in the coming years?

We know build-out will be close to 300,000 [people], maybe 280,000. I try to work under the long-term vision model—what will we look like 30 years from now. While we problem solve for today, the ultimate goal is what the city will be like at build out. It's very important, because cities go through a phase that is very consistent and they end up declining by build out. Our goal is not to do that. That's why we've focused so much on those things that keep us sustainable. Sustainable means different things to different people—financially sustainable and physically sustainable as a community.

It's really more than buildings, it's really people, we have the right people involved. ... The right people are here that have a passion for what they do.

My focus is long-term and sustainability is the key. I want to maintain one of the lowest tax rates in the region. I want to have the best education in the region. I want to have the safest city in the country. Those are all goals that we can achieve and continue to have as long as we stay sustainable.