Meet the Mayor: Get to Know Bob Frutos

Mayor Bob Frutos originally joined the Burbank City Council in May of 2013 under the campaign of neighborhood empowerment, community engagement, and a fresh perspective on the current ongoing problem with our city.  Now serving his second term as Mayor during his time on Council, Mayor Frutos still holds true to those values he started with.

Mayor Frutos was born in Lincoln Heights and moved to West Los Angeles at the age of 9.  As a teenager, his best friend’s family purchased a house in Burbank, and he started to ride his Yamaha moped to Burbank every weekend to visit his friend. In October of 1986, Frutos joined the Los Angeles Police Department and finally moved to Burbank in 1992. He remained in the department for 28.5 years before retiring and turning to the Burbank City Council to follow his passion for the community. 

During his time at LAPD, Frutos had the opportunity to be a Youth Services Officer in South Central Los Angeles where he was in charge of the Explorer Scout Program. “It was the most rewarding, challenging, and exciting assignment I had,” says Frutos, who got to plan trips for the kids each summer whether it was white water river rafting or visiting a real working cattle ranch. “They became my extended kids. Some still call to thank me for being their mentor and keeping them on the straight path of life.”

When asked about his hopes for Burbank during his term as Mayor, Frutos expressed that he wants to try and bring people together to identity a common ground that benefits the city but at the same time acknowledges our differences to make sure that our little town of Burbank is inclusive to all its people while still moving forward for the future. “We have to get behind our school, behind our community,” says Frutos, who doesn’t want Burbank to be a national city but to remain a small, intimate, quirky, town with good schools and a good community. 

“I care very passionately for the people of Burbank and our diverse community and although we might disagree, my commitment is to always be engaged, make the tough decisions, while trying very hard to protect our rich, unique hometown that we are blessed to be a part of,” says Frutos. “Every decision we make will last 100 years and that’s what I think about. I take my position seriously.”

Along with being a City Council Member, Frutos has a passion for the outdoors. His hobbies include riding trains, riding ATVs in Colorado and the High Sierras, and boating on the Colorado River. “I have always been an environmentalist. I have been to Costa Rica to learn about leatherback turtles, I have kayaked up the Campbell River to learn about orca whales, and I have learned about howler monkeys and their habitats,” says Frutos.  But his main passion has always been locomotives.  During a trip to Mexico at the age of 13 to visit family, where many of them worked for the railroad, he took a ride on a train where his uncle was an engineer.  He got to drive the locomotive and that’s when his love of trains began.  With his wife, Laura, and their dogs, they drive up to the Tehachapi Loop and spend the day watching the Union Pacific Railroad trains.

Get to Know your Mayor

Favorite Food: Prime rib, medium well

Favorite places in Burbank: The Smokehouse and Tequilas Cantina and Grill

What are you watching: Binge watching the 1955 black and white show, Highway Patrol.

Favorite Movie: Emperor of the North starring Lee Marvin and Ernest Borgnine

Spicy or Mild: Mild

Salty or Sweet: Sweet

Tea or Coffee: Tea

Two things you can’t live without: Coca Cola and Chocolate

Dream Car: I have my dream car, a blue 2014 Sting Ray Corvette with tan leather seats.

What do you want to do when quarantine is over: I want to do some type of meet the Mayor, and meet the City Council Members. Let’s have a slice of pizza together, engage the community and be sociable, neighbor to neighbor, face to face.