Kiga to start September 5 and lead staff through transition
SEATTLE (August 10, 2017) – Mayor Ed Murray appointed Fred Kiga as chief of staff today. Kiga will take over from current Chief of Staff Mike Fong on September 5, and serve the remainder of Mayor Murray’s term. He comes to City Hall after five years at Vigor Industrial. Ahead of Kiga’s appointment, King County Executive Dow Constantine announced Fong will become the County’s Chief Operating Officer.
“Fred has more than two decades of experience serving our community, from the state level to the private sector and more,” said Mayor Murray. “He will be a fantastic addition to this team as we make this year as productive and successful as our first three. While we are excited for Fred to come aboard, we will miss the steady leadership and wit Mike has brought to this office and to the City. Simply put, Seattle is a better place because of his service and he has been an invaluable part of my administration. I want to thank Mike and wish him well as he moves forward.”
“I am excited to join Mayor Murray’s team as we sprint through the finish line with major initiatives still in play this year,” said Kiga. “From finalizing our homelessness RFP to KeyArena and Seattle Center, and to the Waterfront, affordable housing and our progressive stance against the Trump administration, we have so much more work to do. Seattle has thrived under Mayor Murray’s leadership and I look forward to continuing that work.”
Kiga has served as chief of staff to Gov. Gary Locke and in senior positions at Amazon, Boeing, Russell Investments and Vigor Industrial. He has bachelors and law degrees from the University of Washington and has served on the board of directors for the YMCA of Greater Seattle and Arcora.
Fong leaves City Hall after 16 years of service to the City, including his final two as chief of staff for Mayor Murray. He started as a legislative aide to Councilmember Heidi Wills before joining Councilmember Tom Rasmussen’s office and then Council central staff. Fong first served in the Murray administration as the Deputy Director of the Office of Policy and Innovation and has overseen major milestone as chief of staff, including police accountability legislation, the implementation of Pathways Home to address our homelessness crisis and the shift to using performance metrics to measure success across city investments.
“It has been an honor to serve in Mayor Murray’s administration as we have made incredible strides toward making Seattle a more equitable city that is open to everyone,” Fong said. “I am especially proud of helping craft and shape the Seattle Preschool Program, the Seattle Parks District and the dramatic expansion in enrollment for our Utility Discount Program. But most rewarding has been the opportunity to drive the Mayor’s progressive agenda alongside the incredible staff in the Mayor’s Office, the Cabinet and the thousands of dedicated City employees. Seattle has undergone a dramatic transformation in my time at City Hall from the emergence of completely new neighborhoods like South Lake Union, an eight-minute light rail ride from Pioneer Square to Husky Stadium to a skyline once dotted with yellow cranes to new skyscrapers from SODO to Seattle Center. So much of what we love about our city started with a policy conversation on the corner of 4th and James and I’d like to thank everyone, including Mayor Murray, who have given me the opportunity to be a part of that conversation for the last 16 years.”
Fong’s final day in the Mayor’s office will be September 1. Kiga will officially begin at chief of staff on September 5, with a salary of $181.301
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