Mayor Jon Martin’s duties with the city of Ocean Shores will soon change.

Exactly how — whether they be ramped up or dropped altogether — is uncertain.

That will depend on both Martin’s willingness to pass up a promotion in the restaurant management industry and whether the city council will offer the mayor a raise at next week’s council meeting.

At the Nov. 14 city council meeting, Martin announced he had been offered a promotion by McDonald’s, where he is currently employed as director of operations for restaurants in the Grays Harbor and Pacific counties, as well as a restaurant in Lacey. He said he has the opportunity to take over a regional role that would require him to oversee 25 restaurants in the region. It would also require his relocation from Ocean Shores, and, therefore, his resignation as mayor.

At that meeting, Martin said his initial intention was to step away from the city. If Martin were to decline the promotion, it would leave him more time for his mayoral duties. Martin said he has a Dec. 15 deadline to choose between the two gigs.

“At this time, I have found it to be imperative to devote more time to our city,” Martin wrote in an email to The Daily World. “This would mean leaving McDonald’s after 37 years of service.”

“Being a part of Ocean Shores has given me an astounding amount of purpose,” Martin wrote.

The mayor of Ocean Shores receives a current stipend of $1,000 per month, or $12,000 per year, according to Ocean Shores municipal code. For Martin to stick around and spend more time with city business, the council would first have to approve a raise in wages.

“I’m still at that age where I’m still employed and plan on making a living,” Martin said at the Nov. 14 meeting.

Given the mayor’s timeline, the council will vote on the raise via ordinance at the upcoming Nov. 28 council meeting.

City Finance Director Angela Folkers estimated the improved salary would be around $65,000 per year, based on salaries of past mayors and earnings of other city employees.

Because of recent shifts in city personnel, the overall cost of administrative staff would remain roughly the same, and it might even save the city money, according to Councilor Eric Noble.

Since the city lost its engineer and public works director, City Administrator Scott Andersen has completed much of the work those positions required. Andersen recently took over as the city’s official public works director. The city also hired a project manager to oversee similar duties.

Martin, should he assume a more devout mayor position, would have more time to assist Andersen with the extra workload, as well as expand other mayoral duties.

“It is unfair for Scott (Andersen) to be city administrator and public works director and not have any additional support,” Martin said.

“My new position would give me additional time to focus on legislative issues, citizen outreach, restructuring city processes and job responsibilities,” Martin wrote in an email.

In the email, Martin did not specify how many more hours the new position would require, or if the increased salary would be paying for a standard 40-hour work week.

Martin also serves a number of other public positions: Public Utility District Commissioner for District 3 (and acting president of the PUD commission), member of the Grays Harbor County Solid Waste Board and Vice President of the Greater Grays Harbor Executive Board.

If Martin were to take the bolstered mayor job, he said he wouldn’t step down from his other positions around Grays Harbor — with the exception of McDonald’s.

“I have been able to maintain this work schedule and commitments without conflicts and have been able to accomplish many items in Ocean Shores,” Martin wrote.

Martin has served as Ocean Shores mayor for roughly one year. He was appointed to the position following the death of Crystal Dingler last November.

Martin’s current term will expire in the fall of 2024. Should the city approve the mayor’s pay raise Monday, it won’t apply after next year’s election. At that time, the salary will drop back to $1,000 per month payment and the council will reassess the mayor’s salary, whether it be for Martin or someone else, according to Noble.

“I plan to honor the commitment that I made to the city council when I was appointed to serve the remainder of the mayoral term,” Martin wrote. “I feel honored to represent Ocean Shores as mayor and look forward to working towards the betterment of our community.”