He’s credited with bringing stability to the department over the past three years.

City Planning Director Larry Frazier is trading in his volumes of municipal code, land-use rules and building permit regulations for a rod, a reel and a pair of hip waders this summer.

“It’s time to retire after 46 years in planning,” said Frazier, who will leave the helm of the city’s Planning and Community Development Department on June 30. “The first thing I’m going to do is go fishing in Seward, Alaska. Then I’ll do some fly fishing out in Nome.

“I might do some more fishing after that.”

Frasier’s three-year stint serving the City of Bainbridge Island was marked by a management restructuring that shored up a department sometimes considered slow and unresponsive.

His leadership also brought greater cohesion and consistency to the planning department, according to Mayor Darlene Kordonowy.

“Larry turned the department around,” she said. “He brought honor and integrity, and there’s a great deal of respect for what he’s done. I’ll miss him greatly.”

The planning department’s mission is to coordinate and manage land-use activity, including long-range planning, code compliance, building plan reviews and the administration of environmental, zoning, subdivision and harbor regulations.

Frazier divided the department into three divisions – building, current planning and long-range planning – which put more authority into the hands of division leaders.

This change, Kordonowy said, boosted communication and accountability within the department.

“He had a very good response time with not as much of a bottleneck in his department, and the number of litigations based on permits decreased significantly,” Kordonowy said.

Frazier received mixed reviews from some who had hoped for more “vision” on the part of the planning department and a greater emphasis on preserving the island’s green spaces.

“For the most part (Frazier) ran a good department,” said environmental activist Charles Schmid. “But, hopefully, the next director will pay more attention to planning for the future and have a better vision for long-range planning.”

Schmid took particular aim at Frazier’s decision last year not to push Washington State Ferries for a waterfront trail connection to the Winslow ferry terminal.

“From my viewpoint, dropping the trail was a bad decision,” Schmid said.

Hired in 2003 on an interim basis after retiring from the directorship of the Cowlitz County planning department, Frazier was asked to stay as the city embarked on the lengthy, and often arduous, process of updating key planning regulations.

“They asked me to stay because there were some challenges here,” Frazier said. “They needed to update the Comprehensive Plan and the Critical Areas Ordinance was coming up. Yeah, it was a challenge, but we got them squared away.”

Perhaps the smallest jurisdiction he’s worked for, Frazier said his staff in the Bainbridge planning department were some of the best.

“I had a small staff but they were a pretty dog-gone good staff,” he said.

He also commended citizens and the City Council for their interest in city planning.

“A lot of citizens are involved and that’s a big strength for Bainbridge Island,” he said. “My general sense is that the city, the mayor, the City Council and citizens support planning and that’s always good to see.”

Frazier will almost miss the 75-minute commute from his home in Tacoma.

“It’s 58 miles one-way,” he said. “I started to enjoy it – sometimes. I made use of it. It’s a good time to process things.”

Spanning nearly a half century, Frazier’s career in municipal planning led him through six jurisdictions before his final stint on Bainbridge.

Frazier got his start with the City of Renton while studying urban planning at the University of Washington

He worked the planning desk in San Diego before his first directorship in Washington County, Oregon.

Frazier also held leadership roles in the planning departments of Manatee County, Florida and Pierce County and served as the director of local government affairs for the Washington Master Builder’s Association. His directorship in Cowlitz County lasted nine years before he made his first attempt at retiring.

Despite the temptation to hang the “Gone Fishin’” sign permanently, Frazier isn’t ruling out another comeback.

“I haven’t thought about it much yet,” he said. “My druthers would be to take the time off. But I don’t know. I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it.”