HomeMy WebLinkAbout250908 WSMINUTES
Eugene City Council
Work Session
Eugene, Oregon 97401
September 8, 2025
5:30 p.m.
Councilors Present: Eliza Kashinsky, Matt Keating, Alan Zelenka, Jennifer Yeh, Mike Clark, Greg
Evans, Lyndsie Leech, and Randy Groves
Mayor Knudson opened the September 8, 2025, work session of the Eugene City Council in a
hybrid format at 500 E 4th Avenue, North Building, Eugene OR 97401.
1. WORK SESSION: City Manager Recruitment
Central Services Executive Director, Mia Cariaga, introduced Valerie Phillips and Jeff Mori
with recruiting firm Bob Murray and Associates, to discuss the job posting and public
engagement process.
Councilor Discussion:
• Councilor Groves -noted the importance of confidentiality for candidates.
• Councilor Leech -asked about the process and timeline to provide feedback on
the brochure.
• Councilor Yeh -spoke in favor of hosting some of the public input sessions
virtually for accessibility; noted the importance of receiving public feedback
early in the process.
• Councilor Zelenka -noted the importance of confidentiality for candidates;
clarified the timeline to provide feedback on the brochure; noted one photo in
the current version of the brochure was of Springfield.
• Councilor Clark-stated his approval of the brochure; noted the importance of
hosting informal events with the final candidates.
• Councilor Keating -noted he is open to hiring a candidate who does not have
city manager experience; stated his approval of the brochure; noted the
upcoming League of Oregon Cities conference as a recruiting opportunity;
suggested adding photo descriptions to the brochure; noted Metro TV creates a
high quality video for the annual State of the City event which could be used as a
recruiting tool; suggested City Manager Medary contribute a quote to the
recruiting materials.
• Councilor Groves -spoke in favor of including more information on the breadth
of city services and current community challenges to better inform prospective
applicants.
• Councilor Leech -clarified the process to provide changes to the brochure.
• Councilor Clark -asked if the City of Eugene has any comparative disadvantages
or structural needs that would make us less competitive to candidates; asked
about regional salary differences.
• Mayor Knudson -asked when the public forum would be scheduled.
MINUTES -Eugene City Council
Work Session
September 8, 2025 Page 1
MOTION: Councilor Evans, seconded by Councilor Leech, moved to
direct staff to schedule a forum to collect public input in alignment with
the proposal presented by Bob Murray and Associates.
VOTE: 8:0 PASSED
IN FAVOR: Kashinsky, Keating, Zelenka, Yeh, Clark, Evans, Leech, and
Groves.
OPPOSED: None.
Councilor Discussion:
■ Councilor Zelenka -asked if they were going to discuss interview process
options.
■ Councilor Keating -asked if a Zoom meeting with Council and the candidates
would be considered a public meeting; asked if Councilors would be expected to
attend the virtual public forum.
The meeting was adjourned at 6:08 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Katie LaSala
City Recorder
(Recorded by Cherish Bradshaw)
Link to the web cast of this City Council meeting here.
MINUTES -Eugene City Council
Work Session
September 8, 2025 Page 2