After serving more than 18 years as the chief executive officer of the Associated General Contractors‘ Oregon-Columbia chapter, Mike Salsgiver is preparing to retire next January. But he has already begun taking on a new challenge.

Common Sense Institute (CSI), a nonpartisan research organization, announced last week that Salsgiver will serve as its executive director, bringing more than four decades of leadership experience in public policy, economic development, and government affairs to the organization.

Salsgiver has led AGC’s Oregon-Columbia chapter since 2008. Prior to taking that role, he worked in government affairs, public affairs, and economic development. He served the Oregon Department of Economic and Community Development, Intel in Oregon, and U.S. Senator Mark Hatfield.

Though Salsgiver announced his retirement from AGC in January 2025, he is under contract through January 2027.

On Monday, the AGC chapter announced the selection of Josh Tompkins as its next CEO. Tompkins is expected to join the organization in May and then work with Salsgiver during a structured transition period through the remainder of the year.

“My time at AGC has been very gratifying,” Salsgiver said. “Almost 20 years is a long time in a role like this, and I feel very good about the association handing off to my successor.”

Brandon Flint, president of the Oregon-Columbia chapter’s board of directors, said the group is sad to see Salsgiver go and that he has always been a steadfast leader for the construction industry in Oregon.

“He will be dearly missed,” Flint said. “He is a hard person to replace.”

Flint added that his longtime friend has clearly impacted the construction industry.

“You talk construction in Oregon, Mike’s in there somewhere,” he said.

The AGC chapter’s board believes it has found the right person to fill the executive director role and is looking forward to the next generation of leadership, Flint said.

CSI asked Salsgiver whether he would be interested in doing some work for the organization when he retires from AGC, he said. CSI is dedicated to advancing economic opportunity and prosperity through data-driven analysis. He said that AGC has been supporting CSI for a couple of years.

“We’re trying to grow their footprint and establish them more firmly in the Pacific Northwest,” he said.

In his new role, Salsgiver will lead CSI’s efforts to expand its impact through rigorous, data-driven research and analysis, helping inform policymakers, business leaders, and the public on the economic issues shaping Oregon’s future. His background in economic strategy, regulatory policy, and industry leadership positions him to further advance CSI’s mission of promoting economic vitality and free enterprise statewide, the CSI press release states.

Salsgiver will contract work with CSI under his new consultant company Forward Strategies.

“Mike brings a rare combination of public policy expertise, private sector leadership, and deep knowledge of Oregon’s economic landscape,” Cinamon Watson, CEO of Common Sense Institute, stated in the press release. “His experience working across industries and at every level of government will strengthen CSI’s ability to deliver high-quality research and expand our impact in Oregon. We are very excited to have him on board.”

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Prosper Portland‘s board of directors on Friday appointed longtime agency manager Lisa Abuaf as interim executive director.

Abuaf takes the agency’s reins following the resignation of former interim Executive Director Shea Flaherty Betin, who clashed with Mayor Keith Wilson and members of the City Council as the group considered a proposal to strip the agency of general funds amid a budget crunch.

Abuaf has served in various roles since joining Prosper Portland (then called the Portland Development Commission) in March 2006. She was most recently director of development and investment.

“Many thanks and much gratitude to Lisa for stepping into this role,” board Chairman Gustavo Cruz said Friday.

Much of Friday’s unusual board meeting was given over to expressions of support for Betin, who led the agency for eight months.

The board unanimously approved a resolution stating, in part: “In a time of critical transition for the agency, Shea Flaherty Betin led with both compassion and practicality, providing a steady hand during the hiring of a new executive director, and maintaining the agency’s mission and work.”

Former Executive Director Kimberly Branam called Betin “an absolutely ideal colleague.”

“Shea, we are all better, and the community is better, and Portland is better for having had the privilege of working with you,” Branam said.

Prosper Portland officials have defended the agency as a newly enlarged and empowered City Council has raised questions about what works and what doesn’t in city government while trying to cut the budget.

Board Commissioner Felisa Hagins alluded to Betin resigning under pressure from city leaders.

“I’m embarrassed, and I’m very embarrassed for our city,” she said. “I think that there are the right ways and the wrong ways to do things, and I think this was not the right way.”

Betin will receive 12 months’ salary, totaling $212,992, as severance. He said he would take some time off before finding a new role.

“I’ve given everything of myself to this place and this city, and I’m looking forward to taking a break and finding out how I fit into this tapestry that is this city and this place,” he said. “But I love you all. Thank you.”

Prosper Portland’s board is in the final stages of hiring a permanent executive director. The agency has extended an offer to a candidate with the expectation that this person will assume the executive director position in August, subject to the board’s approval, spokesman Shawn Uhlman stated in an email.

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