By Corban Stanton
Copy Editor

Denyse McGriff sitting in the commission chair. Photo provided by Denyse McGriff

Lately it seems like New York mayor Zohran Mamdani is constantly in the news, whether it be for hiring someone or for attending a protest. Yet this press can be deceptive, most mayors are not managing more than 8 million people, in fact the majority of mayors serve a population under 50,000 people, which means the job serves a different role.

Denyse McGriff has that different role, serving as mayor of Oregon City since 2022, but involved with local government far longer. 

Most mayors in Oregon are not paid, according to the League of Oregon Cities, in 2020, only 5% of mayors received a salary, which means that most mayors aren’t in it for the reward. 

Also, engagement is often up to the mayor. Other than serving obligatory duties like facilitating city commission meetings and being a board liaison, the mayor is not required to engage the community. 

But for McGriff, showing up for events is part of the job. Showing up for the Christmas Tree Lighting and going to the Teddy Bear Parade are non-negotiable. She has been serving Oregon City for decades whether that be as an official employee or as a volunteer and the work matters to her. 

“You know, I’ll be there for you. I will, if I can do it, I will do it. So when the neighborhood associations called me and asked me to come be at their meetings. Unless it’s a day we have a commission meeting, yes, I will try to be there,” said McGriff.

She backs the statement with an impressive resume of work.

She represents the city on the Urban Renewal Budget Committee, City Budget Committee, Enhancement Grant Program Committee, Downtown Oregon City Association, OC 2040 Project Advisory Team, Willamette Falls and Landings Heritage Area, WES Advisory Committee, MPAC, Willamette Falls Locks Authority, and Metro Regional Solid Waste Advisory Committee. 

Needless to say she has a busy schedule, most of which are part of her official duties. 

“We are responsible as a commission, we have two direct reports. The municipal court judge, this is under our purview, and also the city manager. We do evaluations of each of those people every year,” said McGriff. “My responsibilities, that one serves, those that are informal are; being a face of the city, [and] getting consensus from my colleagues. If we have to be represented on some issue, I can find out what it is that we represent. And then I will move that forward. (…) I try to show up for as many events as possible or activities. Or basically, this is my rule of thumb: if you need me for something let me know.”

Denyse McGriff, right, poses at the May the 4th celebrations at Oregon City library. Photo provided by Oregon City library

Mayors, for the most part, get to pick their own engagement. Some show up for as much as they can and others don’t. Take for instance the May the 4th celebrations at the library this year. McGriff did not need to go, but chose to make it a priority to engage the youth in Oregon City.

Mayors are elected officials, but in small towns they are also engaged volunteers.

One way this can be seen is through party affiliation. Big city mayors, like New York or Portland, often pick a party to run on a platform with and get campaign finance, but in small towns it’s not the same. 

“And when I get asked all the time by people, well how do I like being in politics?” said McGriff. “And I go, I don’t really know because I’m not in politics, which is nonpartisan.”

Mayors are made to be the connecting piece in the city, and part of that is being a nonparty affiliated elected official. They don’t wield massive amounts of power, but instead have influence and can facilitate agreements. 

The system that the majority of Oregon’s cities use is called the weak mayor system. This means that the mayor is dependent on collaboration with the commission, they cannot pass any ordinances or make policy decisions without a majority vote and they do not get a veto. 

“I am one of five votes, and it takes three votes to pass something. What is the harm in collaborating?(…) I ask their opinion a lot.” said McGriff.

Some mayors still run for office because they want a title, but a lot of them genuinely care about their neighborhoods. 

McGriff said, “But getting involved, right, this is my neighborhood right here. Getting involved in that was really important to me.”

Being mayor for a big city usually comes with power and prestige, but at the local level it is something entirely different.

“Part of this job is maybe I care too much about it. I care a lot about it. Oregon City means so much to me. It’s, as long as I’m breathing, I will still give back to Oregon City. It’s just kind of how I’m wired,” said McGriff.

For those looking to get engaged, McGriff has one large recommendation.

“My best advice is: start where you are. We have 11 neighborhood associations in Oregon City, and it is so easy to go to a meeting and they actually operate positively,” said McGriff. “I know sometimes people get together because they’re going to sign a petition and they’re going to be against something, but neighborhood associations are for things, and they want to make their neighborhood better.”