Find out how your citizen representatives are monitoring zoo planning, construction and spending.
When voters supported a bond for zoo improvements in 2008, they also approved forming a committee of citizens to monitor how their dollars are spent. Learn more about your citizen representatives.
In 2008, voters across the Portland metropolitan region supported a $125 million bond for Oregon Zoo improvements. The zoo is developing a master plan, six new animal exhibits, a conservation education center and a veterinary medical center, all designed to save water and energy and provide a better experience for visitors.
Committee members
The Oregon Zoo Bond Citizens' Oversight Committee was created to provide a third-party review of the Oregon Zoo Infrastructure and Animal Welfare Bond Program to the Metro Council and citizens. The committee is looking at how decision-making occurs and how business is conducted, as well as determining whether the program is on the right path in terms of structure, management, expenditures, personnel and achievement of defined goals. Members include professionals with experience in construction, sustainability, animal welfare, labor, finance, public budgeting and auditing, and general business.
Committee chair: Deidra Krys-Rusoff
Deidra Krys-Rusoff is a portfolio manager and a member of the fixed income team at Ferguson Wellman Capital Management. A native of Idaho, Krys-Rusoff earned her B.A. in zoology from the College of Idaho. She is on the board of directors of the Northwest Taxable Bond Club, is a past board member of the Junior League of Portland, and serves on several committees at Glencoe Elementary School.
Marcela Alcantar
As president of Alcantar & Associates, Marcela Alcantar provides engineering support services in the community, producing quality construction documents and maps. She focuses on providing services for under-represented groups and students interested in the engineering field.
Jacqueline Bishop
Jacqueline Bishop is an attorney and previously worked at Roberts Kaplan, where she participated in the real estate, business and sustainability practice groups. She is a board member of We Love Clean Rivers, a representative on the Oregon State Bar's sustainability task force, and a LEED Accredited Professional. Before graduating from law school at Lewis & Clark, Bishop worked as a wetlands and fisheries biologist.
David Evans
Senior vice president and chief financial officer for The ODS Companies, David Evans is responsible for overseeing financial, treasury, regulatory, informational services, underwriting and actuarial functions. Previously, he served as controller of The ODS Companies for nearly a decade. Prior to joining ODS, Evans was an audit manager at PricewaterhouseCoopers, where he focused on financial services, including insurance and real estate. Evans is an active certified public accountant and also a member of Metro's bond oversight committee for Natural Areas.
Greg Gahan
Greg Gahan, owner of Northwest Construction Management, is a nearly lifelong resident of the Portland metro area. He has engineering and business degrees from Oregon State University and Portland State University in addition to 25 years of commercial construction experience in the region.
Ann English Gravatt
Ann English Gravatt is the Oregon director at Climate Solutions. Gravatt has more than a decade of energy experience, working as a consultant, policy advocate and attorney. From 2002-2010, Gravatt was the policy director for the Renewable Northwest Project. Before that, she practiced natural resources and energy law for several years in Portland and Washington, D.C. Gravatt received her bachelor's from the University of Richmond and has a law degree from George Washington University.
Sharon Harmon
Executive director for the Oregon Humane society since 1998, Sharon Harmon has helped lead the organization for 22 years and been a professional in the field of animal care and welfare for almost 30 years. She holds a Bachelor of Science, Zoology (Pre-Vet Med) from Oregon State University and a Certificate in Nonprofit Business Administration and Leadership from Johns Hopkins University, and is a certified Animal Welfare Administrator. Recipient of the American Veterinary Medical Association’s Humane Award for 2008, she is currently the president of the National Federation of Humane Societies.
Jim Irvine
Jim Irvine is chairman and CEO of the Conifer Group, a 65-year-old family-owned firm specializing in home building, land development and property management. The company is also a licensed real estate brokerage in Oregon and Washington, with practice in design development and construction. The Conifer Group has received national recognition for innovation and sustainable design and is a founding member of the U.S. Green Building Council.
Bill Kabeiseman
Bill Kabeiseman is an attorney at Garvey Schubert Barer specializing in land use and municipal law. He graduated from the University of Oregon School of Law and later served as an adjunct professor teaching land use law at the school. He chaired the Oregon State Bar Task Force on Sustainability and is on the Multnomah County Planning Commission.
Carter MacNichol
Carter MacNichol is a managing partner for local urban developer Shiels Obletz Johnsen and a managing member for Sockeye Development. He has experience in real estate management and development for the Port of Portland, has worked as a project manager for the Portland Development Commission, and taught for the Oregon City School District. MacNichol is active on several local boards, including the Oregon Zoo Foundation, The Nature Conservancy of Oregon, and the Oregon "I Have a Dream" Foundation.
Ray Phelps
Ray Phelps is manager of Regulatory Affairs for Allied Waste Services, Inc. He has served as assistant to the secretary of state, where he was responsible for Oregon elections, administrative rules, uniform commercial code, and budgeting for the secretary of state's office. He has also served as Metro's chief financial officer and director of administration.
Penny Serrurier
An attorney with Stoel Rives, Penny Serrurier practices law in the areas of tax-exempt organizations, charitable giving, estate planning and administration, business succession planning, and personal tax planning. She represents tax-exempt organizations and advises them on aspects of governance, compliance and tax-related matters. Serrurier has served on several local boards and is a past chair for the Oregon Zoo Foundation board of trustees.
Bob Tackett
Bob Tackett serves as executive secretary and treasurer for the Northwest Oregon Labor Council, AFL-CIO. He has been active in the labor movement for more than 36 years, primarily with the Steelworkers. He worked at Reynolds Metals Co. in Troutdale until the plant closed. He has since worked for the Oregon AFL-CIO as a labor liaison until being elected executive secretary treasurer for the labor council in 2009.
