Washougal’s new city administrator won’t have to relocate too far when he begins work in City Hall next month.
Mayor Sean Guard announced Monday that the city hired David Scott, Vancouver’s director of development review services, as its new city administrator. The Washougal City Council unanimously approved the appointment at its meeting Monday evening. Scott will begin May 3.
“David is highly qualified and more than ready to step up to this new position,” Guard said in a news release. “In his current position at the city of Vancouver, he has a staff larger than the whole staff at Washougal and has a budget that is in excess of Washougal’s total annual budget.”
As city administrator, Scott will oversee six department heads. The details of his employment contract are being finalized and will go to the city council for approval at an upcoming meeting.
Scott, 47, has worked for the city of Vancouver for 11 years. Prior to his current position, Scott was the building official for the city of Tigard, Ore., for six years and worked for the city of Los Angeles for seven years. He has a bachelor’s degree in structural engineering from the University of California at San Diego and a master’s degree in public administration from the Hatfield School of Government at Portland State University.
Scott said he plans to work with Guard, the city council and the staff to continue to build credibility and transparency in City Hall. The city has already begun addressing concerns in the report from the state Auditor’s Office, and Scott said he hopes to provide leadership as the city moves forward.
“First and foremost, I’ll continue to operate the way I’ve done in my career, which is to be approachable, honest, transparent and try to form positive relationships with everyone I work with,” he said Tuesday.
In addition, Scott said his priorities include balancing the city’s budget while maintaining services, reviewing and updating the capital facilities plans and fostering economic development in the city.
Scott will also be involved in the process to hire a new finance director. He said he will look for three qualities in a finance director candidate: integrity, communication skills and professionalism. It’s important the new finance director is a highly skilled professional with proven experience in similar working environments, Scott said.
Scott currently lives in southeast Vancouver but said he plans to relocate to Washougal. Scott has been married for 21 years to his wife, Julie, and has two teenage children, Emily and Ryan.
Scott said he appreciated the support he received from city officials and staff in Vancouver during the interview process in Washougal.
“I’m sad to be leaving Vancouver on one hand because we have a great team here,” he said. “But I’m very excited for this new opportunity.”
Marissa Harshman: 360-735-4546 or marissa.harshman@columbian.com.
