Nov. 4--Randy Berggren, general manager of the Eugene Water and Electric Board for almost 20 years, has announced he will retire from the job in May.

The announcement, in a letter to EWEB commissioners, did not come as a surprise. Berggren, 62, has been telling the utility's board for several months that he was considering retirement, and his contract requires him to give six months notice before leaving the job.

Berggren has worked at EWEB for 24 years and is the utility's longest-serving general manager. He was named interim general manager in 1990 and given the job permanently later that year.

Commissioners last month approved a $70,000 contract with an executive recruiting firm to conduct a national search for a new manager.

Berggren has presided over some tumultuous times at EWEB, not the least of which was the energy price roller coaster set off by the Enron scandal and the collapse of California's effort to deregulate the electricity market. Sharp increases in power costs forced EWEB to borrow millions of dollars and impose steep rate increases.

Berggren said that period stands out in his mind as the most difficult of his tenure.

"We were just a part of it, but those were very trying times financially," he said.

Berggren also oversaw the complex and controversial relicensing of the Carmen-Smith hydroelectric project as well as EWEB's decision to build a new operations center in west Eugene.

EWEB also voted in its first union in 2003, then went through a divisive strike in 2006. But Berggren said the organization "has come a long way" since then to build a strong relationship with employees.

Berggren will earn $207,298 in salary this year, plus $10,364 that is placed in a deferred compensation account. He also receives a $4,800 annual vehicle allowance.

Although Berggren declined a pay raise last December because of the failing economy, his compensation package has at times sparked controversy. Board members in 1998 gave him a $378,000 deferred compensation package that gave him an additional $35,000 a year as long as he remained with EWEB through 2006.

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