Burton to hire interim Camas city administrator

Camas Mayor Pro Tem Ellen Burton has announced plans to hire an interim city administrator to help run the city after current City Administrator Jamal Fox leaves his position on July 9.

“This is an extremely important role managing the day to day operations,” Burton said during the Camas City Council’s virtual town hall on Monday, June 14. “If you think about it from a business perspective, this is kind of like the chief operating officer. This is a very key role, and we all recognize that.”

Fox, who came on board in the summer of 2020, announced his resignation May 26. His announcement came just a few weeks after then-Camas Mayor Barry McDonnell abruptly resigned less than halfway through his first term and handed his responsibilities to Burton, an elected city council member and the city’s mayor pro tem.

“We have a lot of moving parts at the moment,” Burton said Monday. “We will have a new mayor elected in seven months and we’ll have new council members elected and sworn in in January (2022).”

Burton said she plans to hire an interim city administrator who “hopefully understands the nuances of the area.”

“The duration of this hire is to make sure we set the next administration up for success,” Burton said. “That’s my key goal — to hand off a very efficient city to the next mayor.”

Under the city’s mayor-council form of government, the city administrator oversees the day-to-day business of the city at the direction of the mayor. The city administrator is Camas’ highest paid city employee, with an annual salary ranging from $143,400 to $171,768 in 2021.

Camas Communications Director Bryan Rachal has said the city “will eventually conduct a national search to find Fox’s replacement.”