RACER Management Team

Elliott P. Laws

Elliott P. Laws was appointed by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court as the Administrative Trustee of RACER Trust at its founding in 2011, serving an initial five-year term. He was reappointed in 2016 and 2021.

Mr. Laws is a former official of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency where he served as assistant administrator for Solid Waste and Emergency Response (now Land and Emergency Management). In that role, he was responsible for regulatory and policy development and implementation for solid and hazardous waste management and site remediation. This included the Superfund, Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, brownfields, and underground storage tank programs. Prior to his role at EPA, Mr. Laws was an attorney at the U.S. Department of Justice; president of safety, health and environment for Texaco Inc.; and a former Manhattan assistant district attorney. He is a retired partner at the law firm Crowell & Moring LLP.

Bruce Rasher

Bruce Rasher is responsible for managing the redevelopment, sale, and lease of the Trust’s properties, in consultation with the Trustee and federal, state, and local officials.  He previously served as Vice President of CBRE, the world's largest real estate services firm, where he was based in Detroit and co-managed CBRE's North American manufacturing and distressed assets specialty practice groups. He is the former mayor of Marshall, Michigan.

Patricia A. Spitzley

Patricia A. Spitzley assists in the redevelopment of the Trust’s properties and manages its governmental relations.  Ms. Spitzley has worked in the environmental/regulatory arena for more than 30 years, including holding various leadership roles in Michigan state government in environmental policy, legal affairs, communications and community outreach. She is a former two-term member of the Lansing City Council.

Steven Black

Steven Black implements the Trust’s real estate redevelopment strategy by coordinating efforts of internal and external partners to effect the sale, lease and license of Trust properties. He also supervises RACER's team of site managers and on-site contractors, who are responsible for minimizing holding costs and managing and maintaining each property in a marketable condition. Mr. Black is a Certified Economic Developer with extensive experience in brownfield redevelopment and economic development, having served eight years as Deputy City Manager of Community Development for Bay City, Michigan.

Nathan Etu

Nathan Etu is responsible for the Trust’s data management, title matters, marketing materials, and real property tax matters for RACER Trust’s portfolio, as well as for GIS mapping in support of RACER’s cleanup and redevelopment missions. He is an elected member of the Warren County (New York) Board of Supervisors.

Carl Garvey

Carl P. Garvey is responsible for the operations of the Trust’s Legal Office.  Prior to joining RACER in 2011, Mr. Garvey was an attorney with the U.S. EPA, primarily as Superfund enforcement counsel at EPA Headquarters and at EPA Region 2. 

Scott R. Hamilton

As Chief Financial Officer, Scott R. Hamilton directs and coordinates the Trust’s financial and budget activities to fund operations, minimize risks, increase efficiency and ensure compliance with requirements of the Settlement Agreement. He is a Certified Public Accountant, Certified Insolvency and Restructuring Advisor, and Certified Fraud Examiner, with experience in investigative and forensic accounting.

Pamela Barnett

Pamela L. Barnett is a professional geologist with more than 35 years of experience with environmental compliance and remediation at various industries/facilities.

Robert Hare

Robert W. Hare is a professional engineer with decades of experience with environmental compliance and remediation at auto industry facilities.

M. Brendan Mullen

M. Brendan Mullen is a professional engineer/board-certified environmental engineer and holds an MBA in financial management.

Grant Trigger

Grant R. Trigger is a professional engineer and an environmental attorney.