Portland Mayor Keith Wilson has nominated Raymond Lee to be Portland’s first permanent city administrator.

Lee, 41, was most recently the city manager of Greeley, Colorado, a city with a population of 116,000, around five times smaller than Portland. Greeley has around 1,600 city employees, less than a quarter of Portland’s roughly 7,000 city workers.

“As the mayor of a city on the rise, I knew Portland would need an innovative city administrator with a track record of success to unlock a new chapter of safety, innovation, and shared prosperity,” said Wilson in a statement. “We’ve found that and more with Raymond Lee.”

If appointed, Lee will replace longtime bureaucrat Michael Jordan, who has worked as the interim city administrator since Portland transitioned into a new form of government in January. The voter-approved changes created the influential role, which has responsibilities and power comparable to the mayor.

Under the new “mayor-council” form of government, the administrator oversees all internal city operations — from finances to bureau staffing. The mayor, who no longer sits on the city council, has a more outward-facing role as the top executive and oversees decisions made by the city administrator. This change in role has often put Portland’s City Council at odds with the city administrator’s office, which has argued that the non-elected position holds too much power.

In a statement, Lee said he’s ready to take on this new responsibility.

“Throughout my career, I have been guided by a deep commitment to public service, values-based leadership, and creating environments where people and communities can succeed,” Lee said. “Stepping into this moment for Portland is both a responsibility and a privilege, and I welcome the opportunity to partner with the mayor and council as we continue building a strong foundation for this new form of government.”

The roles of Portland’s city administrator differ slightly from Lee’s work as Greeley’s city manager.

Greeley operates under a council-manager style of government, where the seven-person legislative city council includes the mayor. Unlike in Portland, the city’s administrative work is overseen by its city manager, not the mayor.

As city manager, Greeley oversaw an annual budget of around $515 million. That’s about 6 percent of Portland’s current budget of $8.6 billion. Despite managing a much smaller budget, Lee has faced budget challenges similar to those experienced in Portland. Greeley faced a budget deficit of around $21 million earlier this year. Lee addressed that gap by tapping into unspent city reserves and instituting a hiring freeze, according to a city announcement Lee made via email.

Jordan ordered a hiring freeze in October, pointing to an unexpected $12 million shortfall in the current year’s budget. The city is expected to face a much larger budget gap ahead of next year’s budget process.

Lee was appointed Greeley’s city manager in January 2022. Prior to that role, Greeley worked in city government in Texas, where he was the director of public works for the city of Amarillo and assistant director of Dallas’ transportation department.

Portland City Council will vote to confirm Lee’s nomination on Dec. 10. If appointed, Lee would start work Dec. 29 and make an annual salary of $370,000.

News Source : https://www.opb.org/article/2025/12/02/portland-oregon-raymond-lee-city-administrator/