News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Mac Hay has elected not to renew his contract as Sisters' economic development manager.
The council approved renewal last month on the $30,000-per-year contract, but Hay informed the City last week that he will not continue.
Though there has been contention and controversy over the position - even before Hay took the job - he insists that that had nothing to do with his decision.
"It's not the politics," he told The Nugget. "It's a full-time job... You can't do a job like that part-time, and I never treated it as a part-time job, ever. I always treated it as a full-time job."
At age 70, with a desire to travel and enjoy life in Sisters Country, the work was too consuming.
"I'm really looking at reprioritizing my personal life and my business life and a full-time job is not on the docket; it's not something I want to do."
Hay has asked the city council to simply extend his contract for a couple of months to allow him to complete a pair of events he has planned - a business pub talk at Bronco Billy's Ranch Grill & Saloon on July 25 and a "Made in Sisters" tour for state, regional and local government officials and business leaders to show the "hidden side" of the Sisters economy - its light-manufacturing base.
Hay's job has largely entailed fielding inquiries and acting as what he calls "a facilitator and point-person following up leads and inquiries" and developing contacts with local government officials and staff, landlords and financial institutions.
Councilor Pat Thompson sees Hay's work as vital to creating the perception that Sisters is "open for business" - and delivering on that perception.
"I think it is a great loss for the Sisters community and for Central Oregon in general," Thompson said of Hay's departure.
He noted that Hay combines a complementary set of personal traits and business experiences that made him uniquely adept at his work.
"I don't know if (those traits) can be replaced," he said. He said the council would have to "search hard for a replacement and/or rethink our economic development strategy."
Hay himself believes that the city should take a fresh look at the position. Does the city and the business community want a facilitator or an aggressive recruiter? If it's the latter, Hay believes, $30,000 isn't enough.
"The city needs to decide how serious they are about funding the position," he said. "Should it be an employee as a full-time job? There are pluses and minuses to that. Should it be a contractor? There are pluses and minuses to that."
A marketer/business recruiter would need to reach out of the region.
"I think there are some things you could do proactively outside the region with trade shows and other marketing opportunities, but it's going to cost some money to do that."
How much money?
Hay estimates a salary and expenses package totaling $100,000.
"It is a big number and a big commitment, but I think realistically that's what it's going to take to a have a chance at being successful," Hay said.
Hay notes that another approach would be to decide which of the areas of his broad and vaguely defined job to focus upon.
"I think there's different segments of this job that you could really emphasize - and that's open for discussion," he said.
Hay is pleased with the groundwork he has laid for economic development, including network of contacts with elected officials and agencies.
"I'm really proud of that," he said.
Thompson is grateful.
"I would want to thank him for all he's done for the Sisters community," he said.
Hay is not going to vanish from the scene.
"I'm not going to walk away from the community," he said. "I will continue to promote Sisters - in an unofficial capacity."
Jim Cornelius is editor in chief of The Nugget and author of “Warriors of the Wildlands: True Tales of the Frontier Partisans.” A history buff, he explores frontier history across three centuries and several continents on his podcast, The Frontier Partisans. For more information visit www.frontierpartisans.com.
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