Mayor Keith Wilson has made his choice for the city’s first long-term city administrator after a year-long nationwide search.

Wilson nominated Raymond Lee, who has served as the city manager for Greeley, Colorado since 2021. The news comes two weeks after three finalists arrived in Portland, interviewing with city councilors and other city officials.

“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," Wilson stated in the announcement. "We've found that and more with Raymond Lee. I'm proud to put Lee before my City Council colleagues for their vote, and I'm grateful for their support and enthusiasm as we finalize the confirmation process."

The city administrator is a powerful position in Portland’s form of government, which transitioned to a new voter-approved structure at the start of the year. The city’s top bureaucrat oversees the city's day-to-day operations, managing four deputy city administrators that direct four service areas—City Operations, Community and Economic Development, Public Safety, and Public Works. The city administrator also implements policies adopted by the City Council, and oversees an $8.6 billion budget. That’s a much larger assignment than Lee’s previous role.

Lee will make an annual salary of $370,000. That is the high end of the advertised range, which started at $284,000 and topped out at $393,000 annually. Michael Jordan, the current city administrator, has a $314,912 salary.

Wilson cited Lee’s experience managing 1,600 employees and a $515 million budget, saying he brings a wealth of experience to the job.

Lee’s achievements, listed in Wilson’s press release, include leading a 300-acre entertainment and housing district, with a 10,000-seat arena, revitalization of the city’s downtown, and improving its affordable housing review process.

Wilson also touted Lee’s creation of a housing and homelessness solutions department. That department has served just over 1,000 people since 2024, and 250 have remained housed for at least two years. Through rapid rehousing initiatives, it also brought 49 people into housing during the same period, and placed 60 households into permanent supportive housing, according to the city of Greeley website.

Among the responsibilities in Portland’s form of government, the new city administrator will play a major role in executing Wilson and the City Council’s often conflicting approaches to homelessness. Multnomah County is facing a homelessness crisis, largely concentrated in its largest city, and Wilson is still working to expand shelter capacity to meet the need. Wilson’s campaign goal to end unsheltered homelessness in Portland by December 1 has passed, but Wilson on Monday celebrated an increase of 1,500-beds in the city’s stock since he took office. Currently, the city has 890 beds available, with the remaining beds planned but not yet open.

Multnomah County reports nearly 7,500 people are experiencing unsheltered homelessness as of September. Data shows 1,334 people exited homelessness that month, with 350 moved into permanent housing. At the same time, 1,437 were reported to have become homeless during that period—1,024 of them engaging with the homeless response system for the first time.

Lee resigned his position in Greeley on November 10, weeks before Wilson’s hiring decision. Lee’s resignation is effective December 2, coinciding with Mayor Wilson’s announcement of his nomination. 

The Colorado city of 116,000 appointed an acting city manager to serve while Lee was out of the office for the holidays. A November 10 official statement from the city of Greeley announcing Lee’s departure indicated he was leaving to “explore new opportunities.” Greeley’s City Council held an emergency meeting in November to accept Lee’s resignation letter and appointed an acting city manager in his absence.

A separation agreement between Lee and the city shows his last official day was November 21, and Lee was paid his remaining wages, unused vacation hours, and $106,000 when he left. The agreement was not a result of any legal claims brought by the city or Lee, according to Greeley executive spokesperson Barb Hey.

“City Manager Lee made the decision to leave his position in Greeley because he was pursuing other opportunities,” Hey told the Mercury November 19. “And no, there were no legal claims.”

The Portland City Council still needs to confirm Lee's hire before he can assume the new role. They’re expected to vote on the confirmation next Wednesday, December 10. 

If confirmed, Lee is expected to start working December 29 and relocate to Portland in January.