The Clean Water Consortium voted to proceed with a request for proposals (RFP) for contracted managing-director services after reviewing a draft job description. The motion passed unanimously.

Board members said the position should be flexible — either an individual contractor or a consulting firm — and recommended advertising to attract regional candidates familiar with state funding, Salem advocacy and local rural conditions. The draft posted for discussion proposed a part-time/contracted role with responsibilities that include grant coordination, community engagement, liaison work with municipalities and state agencies, and oversight of engineers and consultants tied to project implementation.

The board discussed a proposed salary range for a contracted managing-director equivalent (presented as an annualized guide): $60,000–$80,000 for a part-time/contracted arrangement (board members flagged that a full-time, highly experienced candidate would demand more). Several members recommended targeting retired or semi-retired public managers or small firms that already offer project management and grant-writing services to local governments; such candidates would avoid requiring full-time county employment and could scale effort with the consortium’s project list.

Members discussed supervision and accountability: the contracted managing director would report to the CWC board/steering committee, coordinate closely with county staff and consultants, and produce defined deliverables and periodic status reports. Several members said the consortium should prioritize applicants who live or work in the region so they can do in-person outreach and represent the region effectively to state and congressional staff.

The board directed Matt Jensen and Tamara (planning director) to refine the draft language and finalize the RFP; staff will issue the solicitation to procurement channels, expect proposals back in a defined bid window, and return results to the board for award or further action.

Next steps: finalize RFP language, advertise the solicitation (Indeed, Oregon Business Journal and other channels), and return to the board with proposals and a recommended contract for approval.