Sandra Patterson, the former city administrator for the city of Union, is among the finalists for the city manager position in Milton-Freewater in March 2024.

MILTON-FREEWATER — A former Union city administrator is among the four candidates in the running to be the next city manager for Milton-Freewater.

The Umatilla County community released the names and a few details regarding the four candidates the city is considering to hire as the next city manager to replace Linda Hall, who retired from the position Jan. 31.

Sandra Patterson from 2006-17 worked in Union as the city administrator, recorder, land use planner and elections officer. In 2017, Patterson filed an ethics complaint in which she alleged the Union City Council violated Oregon’s public meetings law.

The Oregon Government Ethics Commission approved a negotiated settlement in 2019 on the case. The members of the Union council at the time of the violation received “a letter of education” from the commission explaining the statute that appeared to have been violated and how it could best be followed.

Patterson, in her complaint, said on June 15, 2017, an executive session was conducted in which a law was violated because of a procedural error. The Ethics Commission found a violation possibly occurred when the severance package for an employee who had resigned may have been unlawfully discussed during the executive session.

Patterson also served as the Joseph interim city manager for 10 months, as a recorder/elections office in La Grande for more than a year, and with the Union County Chamber of Commerce and Tourism for two years as the office manager and in public relations.

Two of the other candidates are from Northeastern Oregon — Ben Burgener and Aaron Palmquist.

Burgener is the city manager in Stanfield. He was the city administrator of Ada, Minnesota, and held short-term positions with the Utah Department of Transportation and in private sector firms. Palmquist is the city manager of Irrigon. Before that he was the operations and quality manager and city administrator and recorder in Monroe, 2000-04. He also held positions with Salem, Springfield and Prineville and was on military deployments in 2011-12 and 2004-05.

The fourth candidate, Chad Morris, is in his 22nd year with the city of Niceville, Florida, population 16,000. Since 2023 he has been the deputy city manager, since 2009 he also has been the city’s director of purchasing and since 2011 he has been the director of information systems.