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North Bend council confirms Amber Emery as city administrator; council authorizes employment agreement
Summary
Amber Emery was confirmed as North Bend city administrator and the council authorized execution of her employment agreement. Emery is set to start July 21, 2025; council members praised a competitive, multi‑stakeholder hiring process.
The North Bend City Council voted unanimously to confirm Amber Emery as the city’s next city administrator and authorized the mayor to execute an employment agreement with her.
Mayor Mary Miller introduced Emery as the mayor’s appointee; the council then voted to confirm. City staff described Emery as an experienced public administrator who has worked in Washington and Oregon for 11 years and most recently served as deputy county manager for Clark County, Washington. Emery told the council, “I’m truly honored to join this community and help lead this organization.” Her official start date was announced as July 21, 2025.
Council members praised staff for a transparent and thorough recruitment process. Mayor Pro Tem Mark Jocelyn and others noted the involvement of staff and community stakeholders in candidate review; Jocelyn said he was “very pleased” and looked forward to working with Emery. The council then approved a separate agenda bill authorizing the mayor to execute an employment agreement in a form approved by the city attorney; that measure passed unanimously.
Discussion versus decision: the council held no extended debate after the confirmation; the actions were formal confirmation of the mayor’s appointment and authorization for the mayor to sign the standard employment agreement. Legal and personnel specifics of the agreement were not read into the public record beyond the start date and the staff assertion that the contract follows the template used for other upper management positions.
Clarifying details: Emery’s start date is July 21, 2025. Staff noted Emery’s academic credentials: a master of advanced study in criminology, law and society from the University of California, Irvine, and a bachelor’s degree from Washington State University Vancouver; staff also listed prior roles including criminal court operations manager and court executive officer in Vancouver, Washington, and her current role as deputy county manager for Clark County.
The motions to confirm the appointment and to authorize the employment agreement were both approved 7–0. The council took a photo with Emery following the vote and moved on to the next agenda items.
