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Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler has revealed who'll fill three new interim positions that will be key to the city’s transition to a new form of government.
The city’s current Chief Administrative Officer Michael Jordan will act as the interim chief city administrator, Jonas Biery will act as the interim deputy city administrator for budget and finance and Sara Morrissey will act as the interim deputy city administrator for city operations.
All interim positions are effective July 1 and end June 30, 2025, when the search for Portland’s first city administrator is expected to end. The new chief city administrator will report to and be appointed by whoever wins the mayoral election this fall, but must be approved by the 12 new councilors who will also be elected this fall.
Deputy city administrators will be hired by the chief city administrator, and will report to them rather than the mayor.
“I sought out public servants who are able to immediately hit the ground running to help with the transition process. These people have long-lasting relationships with our partners and a strong familiarity with city of Portland operations and management. They have the skills, expertise, and drive to see this through,” said Wheeler, who will not seek reelection, in a release.
Under the new charter, councilors will no longer oversee bureaus like they do now. Instead, bureaus will become “service areas” that report to the mayor. The six service areas that will be implemented Jan. 1, 2025, are finance, operations, community and economic development, community safety, parks and recreation and public works departments.
As Portland’s Chief Administrative Officer over the last two years, Jordan has overseen citywide initiatives and central services such as human resources, technology and finances.
As interim chief city administrator, Jordan will oversee day-to-day operations across the city’s two dozen bureaus and offices, lead the government transition and work with the next mayor to develop a budget for the city.
“Portlanders are counting on us to lay the foundation for a transparent, accountable city government that delivers excellent services and solves community problems,” Jordan said in a press release. “I’m honored to guide that work, in partnership with the city’s leadership team and the 7,000 public servants who keep Portland running every day.”
Deputy city administrators will lead the strategic direction, budgeting and operations of each of their respective areas, serve on a citywide leadership team, identify unique priorities to their service areas and lead the organization through the transition.
As the budget and finance deputy city administrator, Jonas will be responsible for setting financial policy and budget processes for the city, and managing the city’s accounting, budgeting, special appropriations, small donor elections and revenue programs.
He comes from D.A. Davidson & Co’s Portland office, where he was the vice president and public finance banker. He has experience in the City of Portland’s offices, where he worked as the city’s first debt manager from 2011-15, and later as a business services manager for the city’s environmental sciences bureau until 2020.
As the city operations city administrator, Morrissey will manage the city’s internal operations, including HR, technology services, procurement, fleet and facilities, 311, special projects and security. She will also support the city operations team, elected officials, staff and local community through the transition to the new form of government through coordination and education.
Morrissey comes from the mayor’s office, where she started as deputy chief of staff in 2021, managing and supporting Wheeler’s policy team, and leading budget development. She has more than 14 years of public sector experience in Oregon.