Mayor appoints interim city manager.

Byline: Edward Russo The Register-Guard

Assistant Eugene City Manager Angel Jones has been named interim city manager by Mayor Kitty Piercy.

Jones will serve as city manager until the City Council finds a permanent replacement for Dennis Taylor, who will leave his job on July 26 and return to Montana.

But that's if the City Council sticks with the present form of municipal government.

If a council majority supports examining other government forms, that would put the search for a permanent city manager on hold.

If a council majority sticks with the present city manager-city council structure, Jones could apply for the permanent city manager job.

The appointment of Jones, the highest ranking black woman in the city bureaucracy, comes after Taylor's resignation.

Piercy said she picked Jones after considering people in and out of City Hall to be in charge of 1,500 city employees and a $440 million budget.

"I've found Angel to be responsive to requests, open to discussion and great to work with," Piercy said. "She has a lot of enthusiasm about the city of Eugene and, in her assistant city manager position, she is knowledgeable about all the different projects that we have under way."

A nationwide search for a city manager could take eight months or more, Piercy said. During that time, Jones will be in charge of city government while leaders grapple with downtown development, new taxes or fees for street repairs, west Eugene traffic congestion, preparations for the 2008 U.S. Olympic Track & Field Trials and other issues, Piercy said.

"It's a significant interim appointment," Piercy said.

Taylor, the departing city manager, said he has been mentoring Jones and other city executives. He had picked her to be his assistant manager, and he called her appointment to the interim slot a "great choice."

Jones has been the city's point person on the Olympic Trials, and she has been involved with a reprioritizing effort for the next city budget, police department reforms, efforts to alleviate homelessness and a cultural policy review, Taylor said.

Jones graduated from a 10-month city leadership program and from a senior executive program last summer at the University of Virginia, he said.

Piercy said she and Jones have yet to discuss whether Jones will get a pay raise.

Jones makes $122,221 annually, compared with Taylor's salary of $142,416.

Jones, 49, said she appreciates the mayor's "trust and confidence in me."

"I understand that, in talking with the mayor, that I have a lot of support and that truly makes me feel good. I feel that we can move the organization forward."

Jones came to Eugene in 1999 from Richmond, Va. to lead the Library, Recreation and Cultural Services Department. She was the first African-American woman to head a Eugene city department, as well as the first woman of color to become assistant city manager.

Taylor named Jones assistant city manager last December. She replaced Jim Carlson, who became director of the city's central services department.

Meanwhile, it remains unclear whether Taylor's pending departure will prompt a full-fledged debate about changing the city manager- city council form of govern- ment.

City councilors on Thursday may discuss whether they want that debate.

City Councilor Jennifer Solomon requested a work session on the topic in response to comments that City Councilor Betty Taylor made to The Register-Guard after Taylor, the city manager, announced his resignation on May 25. Taylor said then that the city manager structure no longer fits Eugene. She added that she wanted to explore a strong mayor or strong council form of government, in which elected officials have authority over city employees.

In Eugene, the city manager has authority over all but two employees, the police auditor and the municipal court judge. The council sets policy that the city manager implements.

In an e-mail she sent to Piercy and other councilors on Sunday, Councilor Taylor wrote:

"Before we hire a new manager, we need a discussion of the manager's function and powers and whether a City Manager/Mayor/Council is the best form of government for current conditions."

Solomon doesn't want to change the government structure. She said she requested the meeting so the entire council can discuss the topic. "I just didn't want a small group of councilors (who favor doing away with the city manager position) pursuing this on their own," she said. "I want this to be an open and forthright discussion with everyone at the table."

Councilors have until June 14 to respond to the request by Solomon.

Piercy said she does not see a need to talk about changing Eugene's form of government. However, she said the council will decide that.

Jones said she's not sure she would apply for the permanent top job if it becomes available. However, she said becoming a city manager has been her goal. "This (appointment) definitely gets me closer to my goal, and I'm honored to have the opportunity here in Eugene," she said.