The City Council unanimously voted March 11 to hire Jason Ogden in a dual role as the city’s new city manager in addition to his duties as police chief.
Cecily Pretty, serving as city manager pro tem, at the time, provided a brief overview to councilors, explaining the city’s process after former City Manager Kelcey Young resigned last August. The city recruited for a new city manager in October and went through a couple of rounds of evaluation before ultimately determining that Ogden was the best fit.
Ogden’s experience includes nearly 30 years of service with the Sweet Home Police Department, beginning in 1997 as a police officer and landing as police chief in 2022.
To date, his achievements include planning and executing long-deferred maintenance and updates to the Police Department, enhancing the department’s wellness program, strengthening collaboration with Sweet Home School District, and securing funding for body-worn camera technology enhancements.
After Young resigned her position, Ogden stepped in as city manager pro tem between August 2024 and February 2025. The city charter only allows an interim city manager to serve a maximum of six months. During his time in that role, he led the city through the 2024 Green Peter drawdown with a proactive emergency declaration and communication with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers that led to a halt of that year’s drawdown.
He also ensured the execution of maintenance and upgrades to citywide facilities, supported the development of a capital improvement program based on the city’s multiple infrastructure-based master plans, brought process improvements to the city through the use of upgraded technology, and enhanced economic development through local, state and federal partnerships.
According to a press release issued by the city, the City Council chose Ogden for the position based on his education, experience and successful career trajectory with the city. Both Ogden and the City Council agreed he could serve in a dual capacity as both city manager and police chief, “keeping his departmental expertise available to the city while providing a fiscally advantageous arrangement to the city through salary savings.”
Mayor Susan Coleman lauded Ogden for his leadership skills.
“His willingness to fight for our community and be transparent are notable,” she said. “His qualifications and experiences have demonstrated his ability to lead the entire city well.”
Ogden said he was looking forward to continuing leading the city while working alongside the council and city staff.
“I’m incredibly honored and humbled to step into this role and continue serving the community that took a chance on me as a young officer more than 27 years ago,” Ogden stated in a press release. “Sweet Home has always been more than just a place to work – it’s a community I care deeply about.”
Ogden was sworn in during the end of the March 11 meeting, and his term officially began on March 12.
In other business, the council:
- Approved a new Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Family Assistance and Resource Center Group (FAC) for the Managed Outreach and Community Resource Facility for houseless individuals. The original contract expired in March 2024 and has been in “holdover status” until now; the new contract expires in 2028. The primary change in the newest contract begins to phase out the city’s fiscal responsibility to fund overnight security services.
- Tabled until its next meeting a decision on a proposed ordinance that regulates camping within the city, particularly as it pertains to houseless individuals.