Saying he's got a new opportunity to fulfill his "responsibilities to the state and the planet," Metro Councilor Robert Liberty announced Monday that he's leaving elected office.
Liberty will take over as the executive director of the University of Oregon Sustainable Cities Initiative on Jan. 18.
"This is not just going to be Oregon, but it will have a national impact – and potentially international impact – with the kind of work I get to do," Liberty said. "It's playing to my strengths, my interests and my passions. They're great people to work with."
Liberty is the third Metro Council member to leave office since September. That was when Council President David Bragdon resigned a few months before his term ended; Councilor Rod Park's final term in office ends Tuesday.
While Park and Liberty were two of the board's most staunch advocates for conservative land development, Metro Council President-elect Tom Hughes said he doesn't think the agency will have a dramatic shift in their wake.
"I don't see other members of the council being less supportive of good planning and land conservation," Hughes said. "It changes by degrees, but I don't think the emphasis on environmental protection and good land use planning is going to be completely lost."
Once the council formally declares a vacancy, which it's expected to do at its Jan. 20 meeting, it will be at least five weeks before Liberty's seat is filled. A majority of councilors must vote on the new councilor for Liberty's district, which spans from the Washington/Multnomah county line on the west to 148th Avenue on the east. It includes the Gateway regional center and the Lents, Hillsdale and West Portland town centers.
Liberty emphasized that he is not hand-picking a successor, but said he hopes the council will honor the voters' wishes.
"People in District 6 seem to have endorsed my perspectives and views, and I'd hope that the council picks someone who is consistent with the views expressed by the voters in District 6," Liberty said.
Councilor Rex Burkholder said the replacement process can be difficult. He was on the council in 2007 when Carlotta Collette was appointed to replace Brian Newman as the southern Metro region's representative to the board.
"We had a dozen really strong people," Burkholder said. "We interviewed six really good candidates, and it was very hard because they all brought something to it. It's an amazing opportunity to pick someone who brings skills we don't have."
Hughes said he's only heard from one prospective candidate for the job – Liberty's next-door neighbor, Bob Stacey, who lost the November Metro Council President race to Hughes by 1,003 votes. The resignation throws another wrench into what Hughes had hoped would be a smooth transition period.
"This just sort of adds to the turbidity," Hughes said.
Park, who said he and Liberty were the "greatest shade of green" on some issues on the council, said the resignation is a loss for the district.
"One thing about Robert: agree or disagree, he is very passionate about the issues that affect his district," Park said. "The affordable housing issues, the transportation issues – he's very much of an advocate not only for his district but for the entire region."
Beyond sprawl prevention, Liberty, 57, leaves a legacy of being a staunch advocate for smart growth and equitable investment within the neighborhoods of his 240,000-person district.
But Liberty said he's already been a part of many of the key growth issues facing the council.
"I don't think there's going to be much opportunity to rethink those decisions," Liberty said. "I think Tom (Hughes) is going to be thoughtful and collaborative. He understands the region and wants to put the emphasis on using and revitalizing communities within the boundary."
Still, he emphasized he's not driving down to Eugene and leaving Portland behind.
"I expect there's going to be work done by the faculty and students here that could be of great value in the Metro region," he said. "I think we're involved in this joint effort of building a place that's sustainable, livable and equitable."
Liberty, a former student body president at the University of Oregon, will be the first director of the three-year-old UO program. He signed a contract to go to the university Dec. 20, but said he wanted to wait until after the holidays to make the announcement.
He'll be replacing two co-directors, Nico Larco and Marc Schlossberg, at the fledgling institute.
"This is a fantastic moment for our organization and we could not have found a better fit for where we are or where we want to go," Larco said.
Schlossberg said a national search for the organization's director turned up 75 applicants.
"Robert's entire career has been around (sustainability) issues," he said. "We have a national reputation to innovate around these issues of sustainable cities. In some ways, this is a great opportunity not only for us as an organization but an opportunity for many organizations and partners around the state to push things forward."