Overview:

Only six people came to a listening session intended to gather community input on Eugene’s next city manager. Most called for a leader who will grow local business.

A community listening session on Monday, Oct. 20 — one of the main forums for public input on the search for Eugene’s next city manager — drew only six participants.

The City Council in July hired a recruitment firm, Bob Murray & Associates, to launch a national search for candidates to fill Eugene’s top administrative job.

Under Eugene’s style of government, the council decides policies and hires the city manager. The city manager runs day-to-day operations like contracts, hiring and budgeting.

City Manager Sarah Medary announced her retirement in March after six years in the role. She will leave the position in December.

Monday’s meeting was the second of two city-organized opportunities for public input to guide the search. The first was a lunchtime Zoom drop-in session earlier on Monday. The evening meeting was scheduled for 90 minutes and ended in less than 30.

Five of the six speakers said they want a city manager who will bring business to the city. The other spoke in support of climate justice.

“I want to start by thanking everyone who showed up tonight, all six of you, to speak,” Councilor Randy Groves said at the end of the meeting. “I wish we had heard from more, but we’ve all been reading a lot of emails that have been coming in on this subject, and I appreciate the people that take the time to write as well.”

Applications for the position are due Nov. 3.

During an executive session in mid-November, the recruitment firm will share candidates with the council and make a handful of recommendations. Initial interviews will occur in early December, followed by a final public round of interviews in mid-January.

Mayor Kaarin Knudson will also appoint an interim city manager before Medary retires. 

“While council has not outlined the specifics just yet, the community will be represented in this final interview process,” Knudson said Monday.

Shortly before speakers began to share their remarks, Medary left the room.

Nigel Francisco, a Ward 8 resident, shared the story of a friend and former classmate who is now living in Portland because he could not find work in Eugene after graduating from the University of Oregon.

He said the next city manager must attract major employers, which will lift up local homegrown businesses, collaborate with the private and public sectors, and focus on fiscal stewardship and operational efficiency.

“I’m concerned because I have a child, and I would like him to be able to grow up here and participate in this economy, find gainful employment,” Francisco said. “I just don’t know that’s possible in the town that I grew up in and call home.”

Jordan Papé — the CEO of Papé Group, a Eugene-based company that sells, leases and services heavy equipment, trucks and machinery throughout the region — said the city manager must be prepared to counter workforce disruption from the rise of artificial intelligence and robotics.

He gave a shoutout to the city of Bend, saying its city manager has “done it right” and redeveloped the Old Mill District into a “community highlight.”

“As I look at you all today, we face a period of time where our community is at risk. That risk is AI automation and robotics,” Papé said. “We know that it’s coming, and we need to attract the jobs of the future in order to secure our families here in the area.”

Meredith Tufts, a Ward 1 resident, said the next city manager should focus on bringing down the cost of housing and living, while looking ahead to future crises like climate change, and keep sustainability and community resilience “front of mind.”

“I’m here as a parent and speaking on behalf of other families who feel that tightness in our chest in smoke season, and thinking ahead to what climate is going to bring to our community, in our lives and in our children’s lives,” she said.

Tiffany Edwards spoke on behalf of the Eugene Area Chamber of Commerce and said the next city manager must foster a “culture of accountability and partnership” in city hall and restore confidence and optimism in Eugene’s future.

“The next city manager must be bold, a decisive leader who can continue modernizing how our city operates, moving from process to process, from caution to creativity,” Edwards said.

Grace Chinowsky graduated from The George Washington University with a degree in journalism. She served as editor-in-chief of the university’s independent student newspaper, The GW Hatchet, and interned at CNN and MSNBC. Grace covers Eugene’s city government and the University of Oregon.