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QuickTake:
The three candidates for Eugene city manager include two who run other Oregon cities and an internal candidate. One of them likely will succeed Sarah Medary, who was Eugene’s city manager for six years.
They talked about how they would build partnerships both inside and outside Eugene’s borders, offered insights about their management strategy and pondered the future of artificial intelligence in municipal government.
The three finalists for Eugene’s city manager position made their case to the City Council in open interviews Tuesday. The three candidates are Jenny Haruyama, Beaverton city manager; Martha Bennett, Lake Oswego city manager; and Matt Rodrigues, Eugene’s interim city manager and former assistant city manager.
Their interviews are the only open ones in Eugene’s selection process for its next city manager, who will succeed Sarah Medary, who had the job for six years and retired last month. The council’s choice will be responsible for the city’s daily operations, which include managing a workforce of more than 1,500 city employees and a $1.9 billion two-year budget.
The three finalists came from a list of about 50 people who applied to replace Medary after a national search led by recruitment firm Bob Murray & Associates.
The council will deliberate on its choice in a closed-door executive session at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, Jan.14. Council members could settle on their final choice Wednesday or take longer.
The salary range for Eugene’s new city manager is $238,077 to $319,218. Medary’s annual salary in 2024 was $293,217.
Here are highlights from the interviews with each candidate:
Matt Rodrigues
Matt Rodrigues, a Eugene assistant city manager who is serving as interim city manager, said he’s familiar with local collaborations and community partners.
With a public works background at the city, he said, he’s worked on projects that include downtown riverfront development and acquiring the current City Hall property from the Eugene Water & Electric Board.
He said he’s worked with Springfield and other regional partners to present a “united front” when lobbying Oregon’s congressional delegation in Washington, D.C.
Asked about automated license-plate reader technology and whether it’s appropriate, he said the city’s work with Flock Safety, the vendor who provided the technology, led to “issues of trust” after the company “released some local data.”
The key is that people need to feel they are protected and for any future system to also offer value, he said.
“What we heard loud and clear is that folks don’t want that to be wide open,” he said of the technology.
He said he’s hopeful the city can “find a place to bring this technology back.”
He said his experience, connections and relationships would be assets, adding that his family is settled in Eugene.
“It’s our home,” he said. “It’s a place we love.”
Jenny Haruyama
Jenny Haruyama, the Beaverton city manager, gave councilors an example of an exercise with community members that uses pennies to represent limited city dollars. In the exercise, participants gradually get harder and harder tasks and have to decide what pennies to move around to fund different needs.
That exercise, she said, helps community members recognize the challenges of a city budget. In addition, the city hears the perspectives of residents.
“You’ve gained perspective; you may not agree on the issue, but you gain perspective that this is not an easy task,” she said, when asked about getting an understanding about community priorities.
Asked about automated license-plate readers, she said it’s a good idea “if done correctly.” Beaverton is not relying on Flock, but is entering into a contract with a different vendor for police technology, she said.
“I do think that making sure we are responsible where that information goes” is vital, she said. “We are responsible to protect our residents, and so we’ve intentionally not gone in the Flock direction.”
Asked about the city’s intent to have a successor program to CAHOOTS, which provided crisis response services until the contract ended, she said that goal likely will require an additional revenue source, or other creative way to deliver it, “if that’s important to you.”
She said there are always trade-offs when a city has to set priorities.
“I want to be really respectful, and it’s tough,” she said. “I mean, we want to have it all, but I don’t think that that’s feasible.”
Martha Bennett
Bennett, the Lake Oswego city manager, told councilors she’s a people person. Her approach to collaboration is to build relationships with people before work on a project begins.
“It’s really important to not just think of it as a transaction, but rather I think of it as a long-term ongoing relationship,” she said.
With a smile, she cracked one-liners at times to drive her point home: “I’m only afraid of snakes and heights. I’m not afraid of ideas or interests.”
But behind the casual approach is a city manager who has experience working on big-tent issues like urban growth boundaries while chief operating officer at Metro, the regional government agency for the greater Portland area. Work there led to a more thoughtful process for how communities can designate urban growth areas, she said.
Asked about automated license-plate reader technology, she said the city needs to engage the community in a conversation about what would be required to make the technology acceptable for the community.
Bennett said artificial intelligence can help with work, but said it needs to have safeguards and human involvement. Her city, for example, only draws from its own data, meaning it “can’t make anything up,” she said.
“Two years ago I would not have told you that I would use AI to help me write talking points for the mayor,” she said. “And I’ve done it.”
Bennett said she believes Eugene would be a good fit at this point in her career.
“I think we could have fun together,” Bennett said. “I mean, not everything we’re going to work on is going to be fun. … But I think we can do it from a spirit of public service.”
For Bennett, public service means accepting feedback everywhere, even while shopping. In one community, she said, a constituent confronted her with a tantrum about a city decision while she was grocery shopping with her children.
“It was OK,” Bennett said of the experience. “I think I bought beer that time as a result. But I love working in places where people care about their community.”
