Myrtle Creek council backs hiring and administrative changes, approves 90-day city administrator posting

Myrtle Creek’s city council approved several personnel and administrative actions intended to ease staff workload and move code cleanup forward.

Facing staff shortages and retirements, the council approved recruiting a public-works foreman to provide on-the-ground capacity and relieve the director’s workload. Councilors discussed recruitment timeframe and pay range; staff recommended a 30– to 60‑day posting and a pay range in line with experience.

On the city administrator contract, council members debated admin-leave accrual and comp‑time constraints. Concerned about recent overtime and the administrator’s limited ability to take leave, the council approved an amendment to front‑load a prorated 80 hours of admin leave retroactive to August to provide immediate relief while longer-term staffing is resolved.

The council also approved a 90‑day posting for the city administrator position with agreed edits to the job description (removing police‑association grievances from duties, adding council‑manager language, and making hiring contingent on background checks). Several members suggested delaying posting until closer to a ballot measure that could change residency requirements; the council decided to post for 90 days now and proceed with interviews if local applicants appear.

Separately, staff presented proposed Title 10 (vehicles and traffic) code revisions that align the municipal code with the Oregon Vehicle Code and clarify the Central Business District and rules for skateboards, bicycles and similar devices on sidewalks. Council asked staff to return with a cleaned-up version for one final review before a public hearing and first reading of the ordinance.