The City of Pacific Grove is about to hire its next city manager, and it is someone who already lives in town and has local city management experience. Lesley Milton, former assistant city manager of Seaside, is slated to be confirmed by the P.G. City Council on Wednesday, Nov. 18.
She will be the first woman city manager in the city's 137-year history.
Milton will take over from someone she knows very well, her husband, Chip Rerig, the former city administrator for Carmel who's been serving as interim city manager for P.G. since Aug. 24. He was hired as interim after Matt Mogensen stepped down on Aug. 21 as city manager to take the same role in Marina.
"It means a lot to me to serve as city manager in the community I call home," Milton says. "I'm looking forward to spending time with councilmembers, city staff and hearing from residents about what's working, where we can do better and what they want to preserve about Pacific Grove."
According to a staff report attached to Wednesday's council agenda, Milton was chosen after "a diligent process," led by a consultant from the firm Bob Murray and Associates to select finalists, followed by interviews with the City Council.
If approved on Wednesday, Milton will begin Monday, Nov. 30. Her annual salary is set at $280,000, plus benefits.
Milton worked for Seaside from 2013 to 2021 in three different positions: city clerk, public information officer and assistant city manager. Her resume lists administering a $110 million federal environmental-remediation program on the former Fort Ord, directing public communication during Covid-19 and other emergencies, as well as modernizing public access through the city's website.
Milton resigned as assistant city manager in March 2021, just four days after a contentious council meeting highlighting a power struggle between Mayor Ian Oglesby and other councilmembers. In her resignation letter she urged them to "continue to support each other and work collaboratively with staff."
She went on to become the city clerk in Palo Alto that same year, followed by serving as the deputy city manager and assistant director of public works for the City of St. Helena from 2023 to 2025.
Milton then left for Italy to become a graduate scholar and master's researcher in AI & Innovation Management at the University of Bologna. Rerig retired from his job in Carmel in December to join Milton, along with their high school daughter who attended International Baccalaureate school of Bologna. The family returned several months later.
Milton says that as the city's first woman city manager, she hopes that "young people here can see themselves in public service and know there's a place for their leadership."