How long have you worked here?
January 13, 2023, will mark three years that I've been with the City of North Plains. I barely had two normal months getting into the job, and then suddenly the pandemic turned that on its head! But prior to that, when I was an economic consultant, I occasionally helped the City with planning starting as early as 2008.

What do you do in your role for the City?
I'm primarily responsible for putting together the City budget and communicating to City Council and the public how the City's finances are meeting budget and operational goals. I assist the City Manager with planning the future of the City's finances and services as part of City Council goal setting. A big goal we work on every day is to put the City on a permanent, long-term path of fiscal sustainability and the ability to be a full-service city. I also help the City Manager with economic and community development objectives, like the UGB expansion, the Downtown Plan, and the Glencoe Opportunity Area development.

What do you like best about your job?
I get to work with a lot of great people to help North Plains figure out how to take up opportunities and avoid pitfalls as it grows and balances its finances. It's a pretty fulfilling and fun gig indeed.

What is your typical workday like?
Meetings and Excel spreadsheets. That's a ton of my time. Evenings each week, I also attend most City Council meetings, every Economic Development Committee meeting, and most special project advisory committee meetings as well.

I serve because...
City government affects a surprising number of things in our everyday lives and it's both an honor and a joy to help North Plains be the best of things for its residents.

What I love about North Plains is...
The community has a lot of opportunities to embrace new things without becoming an oversized town. It's a friendly, pragmatic place in a lovely setting on the Oregon Coast side of the greater metro area. What's not to like about all of that?

What do you like to do when you're not at work?
I'm a (reasonably) dry-weather outdoors enthusiast! Whether I'm dragging my two teen boys along with me or not, I like hiking, kayaking, camping and fishing. I also like to explore neighborhoods and districts in other places to see what is new and working well as examples of what North Plains might try (or avoid) in its downtown or on Glencoe.