About The Economic Development Alliance

Lynlei Brown is the Executive Officer for the Lincoln County Board of REALTORS® and Oregon Coast Multiple Listing Service. She also serves as Administrator for a Regional REALTOR® Professional Standards Enforcement Group. Prior to her current position with the REALTOR® association, Lynlei was a licensed broker for many years. She was also an entrepreneur in past lives, and is a Past President for the Lincoln City Chamber of Commerce.

Walter Chuck was appointed to the Lincoln County Board of Commissioners in February 2025. He previously worked as a water plant operator for Hiland Water Services and served on the Port of Newport Commission for 14 years. Locally and statewide, Walter serves on advisory committees and boards representing sportfishing and hunting, and he received the Fellowship Award in 2014 from ODFW Marine Resources Program for those efforts.

Lorna Davis works in international marketing for Travel Oregon. She has served as the Manager of the Port of Toledo. Prior to joining the port, she worked at Travel Oregon and was a long standing Director of the Newport Chamber of Commerce.

Bryan has more than 30 years of financial accounting and tax preparation expertise. Formerly with Arthur Young & Co. (now Ernst & Young), Bryan is a member and prior-president of the Lincoln City Rotary Club, a member and past-president of the Lincoln City Chamber of Commerce.

Douglas Holbrook is a lawyer serving Newport in property law, business law and estate planning cases. He is the owning partner of Holbrook & Associates LLC.

Jason is the executive director of Oregon Coast Council for the Arts. He is currently serving as the co-chair of the Coastal Equity and Inclusion Committee as well as Treasurer for the Lincoln County Cultural Coalition. He has worked in non-profit, arts management and community engagement for 20 years.

Carrie E. Lewis has been the President/CEO of the Oregon Coast Aquarium since 2010. She works closely with the Board of Directors, formulating the organization’s strategic
direction. Lewis has general oversight of all properties, including living specimens, and all operations, including the appointment and direction of staff and volunteers, as well as all organizational activities. Lewis is a national board member of the Association of Zoos & Aquariums, Past Board Chair of the Lincoln County Economic Development Committee, and past chair of Yaquina Bay Economic Foundation.

Dr. Marshall Mease Roache is the president of the Oregon Coast Community College. A multiracial, bilingual Puerto Rican, Dr. Roache took the helm at Oregon Coast Community College in January 2025. Previous leadership positions included serving as the Executive Dean of Career & Technical Education and Public Safety at Chemeketa Community College, as well as the position of Dean of the Brooks Regional Training Center and Emergency Services and as a full-time faculty member instructing Criminal Justice.

Paula is the General Manager of the Port of Newport. Previously, Paula spent 12 years as the deputy executive director and real estate and business development manager the Port of Columbia County. Prior to that, Miranda spent five years working at the Port of Portland in the areas of contract administration, property management and tenant negotiation while providing support in many other areas of port development work.

Elizabeth “Lisa” Norton, MSW, is a member of the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians, where she resides and works as the Chief Administrative Officer. As the CAO, she wears many hats, including: Law Enforcement Liaison, Broadband Expert, and other special projects Manager. She has over 20 years’ experience with the Tribe in a variety of capacities. In addition to her experience in Indian Country she has served as Training and Technical Assistance Provider around domestic and sexual violence, been an Executive Director for a community-based advocacy organization, and has a long history of advocating for those she serves. Currently, she has served on a variety of boards, committees, and commissions over her career. Currently these include: Justice Reinvestment Program Grant Review Advisory Committee, Oregon Criminal Justice Commission, Travel Oregon’s Tribal Tourism Working Group. and the State-Tribal Public Safety Cluster. The primary focus of her service and formal education, has been to help folks understand the impact of trauma and find ways to reduce that impact across organizations and within systems. Her love of her community is matched only by her love of her grandbabies and family.

Dr. Ogden serves as the CEO of both the Newport and the Lincoln City Samaritan Critical Access hospitals. She started with Samaritan Health Services as a physician in SNLH’s Emergency Department in 2006.

Greg has 20 years of business development experience. He has founded and operated successful for-profit and non-profit companies in the renewable energy industry where he developed a first-of-its-kind energy forecasting and reporting program. He created and led the study abroad program focused on entrepreneurship, economics and sustainable development for Portland State University.

Linda Roy is the Broker/Owner of Lincoln City Realty, LLC. She has been in real estate for many years, but has also worked in various other fields.

Michael Smith serves as the Vice President and Business Banking Relationship Manager for the North Oregon Coast for Columbia Bank. Michael serves on the board of Northwest Coastal Housing and is also active in Newport’s Rotary club.

Dr. Majalise Tolan serves as the superintendent of the Lincoln County School District. She currently serves as the President for Coalition of Oregon School Administrators for the FY23-24 year. She is the co-author of “She Leads: The Women’s Guide to a Career in Educational Leadership.”

Nina Vetter is the City Manager for the City of Newport, Oregon. She has worked in local and federal government for over fifteen years across Oregon, Colorado and Illinois. She currently serves as the President of the Oregon City/County Management Association.