Newport City Manager Spencer Nebel officially retired on July 8, following over 10 years serving the community in his role, and over 42 years of public service, leaving behind an everlasting legacy of positive impacts for the city's present and future. As the City Manager, Nebel brought stability, consistency, transparency, and vision to the city organization and departments overseen by the city and the Newport residential and business communities. Nina Vetter was selected by City Council as his successor. Known throughout his career as a bridge builder, Nebel has spent his time in Newport connecting the community with city departments and the City Council to discuss and decide issues that impact the future of the city in an engaging and collaborative manner. He spent his final day as City Manager gathering with staff, colleagues, City Council members, community members and stakeholders reflecting on his time in Newport and four decades of public service. It has been a great privilege to serve four communities in City Management over the past four decades. I have been blessed by being surrounded by elected officials that care deeply for the community that they were elected to serve, staff members who work hard to meet community needs with limited resources and community members who are willing to get engaged with community issues to help strengthen and improve their community, Nebel stated. I would be remiss not to express my profound appreciation to my wife Angela who has been a great partner in my professional journey. She has put up with long hours, scheduling around Council Meetings and conferences, hearing much scuttlebutt about various city issues and being a great sounding board and counselor over the years that we have been married. I am also thankful for the many kind comments and words from the Council, Staff, colleagues and community members as Angela and I begin a new phase in our lives. Nebel has seen many successes as City Manager, and one that encompasses his work and vision is the development of Greater Newport Area Vision 2040, a strategic plan to ensure the city's thriving future with reliable, sustainable and well-maintained infrastructure, affordable housing for all income levels, public transportation, unique shopping opportunities, and distinct, diverse, walkable districts and neighborhoods. Nebel worked with Community Development and City Council to enact significant reforms to charges and regulations for housing reform in Newport to provide more affordable housing and increase availability. This led to Newport being identified by Portland State Univ. as the third-fastest growing city over 10,000 people in Oregon in its 2023 population study and estimates. He worked to identify and strengthen resources to assist the city's homeless population, which included collaboration with other communities in Lincoln County. He was also heavily involved in Lincoln County's effort to establish the Oregon House Bill 4123 Homelessness Work Group and Council. He had oversight of the financing, construction and opening of the city's aquatics center, a key community resource for all ages, and the inclusion of crucial seismic upgrades to the main fire station. Under Nebel's direction, regular upgrades have been completed on other important city resources, facilities and buildings such as Newport Municipal Airport and Newport Public Library. Showing a commitment to sustainability measures and the environment as identified by the Newport City Council, Nebel worked with City Council in 2019 and 2021 to adopt restrictions on plastic bags and Styrofoam containers, and in 2022, city-owned electric vehicle charging stations were unveiled. In 2021, he implemented Water Smart software, a resource that allows customers to monitor water daily usage and receive tips on water conservation. In 2016, he introduced paperless agendas for city meetings, greatly reducing paper waste and saving the city thousands of dollars annually. The city has endured a number of FEMA emergencies during Nebel's tenure, including the ice storm in January, 2024, the 2020 water supply crisis, the COVID pandemic, the North Lincoln County wildfire, and the 70th Street landslide in 2015, and he has led the community in navigating the evolving issues that surround them by coordinating emergency responses and working with the city's departments to explore short- and long-term solutions to each emergency. Additionally, to help the city prepare for future emergencies, Nebel collaborated with city staff and Oregon State Univ., which led to the state's first tsunami evacuation site contained in a building at the Hatfield Marine Center. During his tenure, the City of Newport has also started the process on a number of projects vital to the economic and sustainable futures of the city and coastal Oregon. The largest of these projects is restructuring the two earthen dams at Big Creek Reservoir to protect the community's sole water supply. This project will enlarge the upper Big Creek Reservoir and replace both dams with one free of age-related foundational and structural vulnerabilities and built to sustain seismic activity and create storage potential to provide for healthier environmental flows and support Newport's future water supply needs. The shortest timeline for this project is 8 years, with an estimated $123 million needed to complete it. The city has secured over 17% of the funding already, and he played a key role in the authorization of another $60 million in federal funding through the Water Development Resources Act. Nebel has also overseen, and led the initial funding phases of, the city's wastewater treatment plant master plan, which identifies approximately $100 million in upgrades over 15 years that will significantly improve infrastructure and capacity within the city's current water system. In addition, he has initiated an update to the city's water utility master plan. Within the city's departments and facilities, Nebel has worked with staff to create an inclusive, collaborative and transparent office culture that promotes positivity and encouragement. His leadership style has been widely praised among other government entities and leaders throughout his career, and he has served as an influential member of various local government associations throughout his career. He previously served on the Board of Directors for the Oregon City/County Management Association and served as President of the state association. Nebel is also a Credentialed Manager with the International City/County Management Association (ICMA), and was one of three co-chair for the 2021 ICMA Annual Conference held in Portland. A native of Munising in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, Nebel's leadership path began while serving as Student Body President at Grand Valley State Univ. from 1977-79 before graduating in 1980 with a Bachelor of Science, double majoring in Public Administration and Political Science. He later earned a Master's Degree in Public Administration from Northern Michigan Univ. He then spent over three decades in city management roles in his home state, beginning as City Manager for the City of Munising in 1982 at 24 years old. For the next six years, Nebel worked alongside city officials, staff and the community to help grow and improve the infrastructure in the city. Nebel transitioned from Munising in 1988 by serving as the Assistant City Manager for the City of Marquette before taking on the role of City Manager for the City of Sault Ste. Marie in 1992, a city bordering Canada with a unique local infrastructure and residency. While in Sault Ste. Marie, Nebel oversaw a number of projects beneficial to the city's economic future including housing, public transportation and the downtown development. He also collaborated with the Sault Tribe of Chippewa on various agreements including trust land, infrastructure funding, and policing. Nebel held many roles beyond his City Manager positions while in Michigan. He served on the Board of Directors at the Michigan Local Government Management Association, helping to rewrite its by-laws, and sat on a number of committees vital to the Association's structure and work before being elected President in 1998-99. He also was a member of the Board of Director for the Michigan Municipal League (MML) while playing a crucial role for over two decades on MML's Transportation & Environmental Affairs Committee. Nebel was also a member of the Michigan Department of Transportation's International Bridge Task Force and the Michigan Asset Management Council. Community service and the responsibility to help others has also been a core value in Nebel's career, as he has worked with a number of groups in his local communities to better serve their diverse populations and needs. In Oregon, those organizations include the Yaquina Bay Economic Foundation and Newport's Rotary Club. In Michigan, he was heavily involved in the Chippewa County United Way, Sault Community Foundation, Janzen House Homeless Shelter, Munising Memorial Hospital and the Sault Ste. Marie Rotary Club, where he was selected Rotarian of the Year in 1998. Nebel and his wife, Angela, plan to remain in Newport where they will service as active members contributing to the future growth of the city.