As Reedsport Mayor Linda McCollum prepares to leave office at the end of the year, she is being honored for more than a decade of city leadership.
The League of Oregon Cities recently named McCollum its 2026 Small Cities Mayor of the Year. She has served as mayor since 2015, after two years on the City Council.
“It is an honor for the city,” McCollum said. “Somebody noticed the years I’ve been here. It just was something that will always be very special to me.”
McCollum has helped lead several long-term projects in Reedsport, a coastal community of about 4,300 people along the Umpqua River.
She was a founding member of the Reedsport Main Street program, which works to revitalize the city’s downtown. Its efforts have included urban renewal support and grants to improve storefronts.
“Our emphasis is trying to get the downtown to not look deserted,” McCollum said. “And we have done a fairly good job of getting more businesses downtown.”
For McCollum, the downtown’s transformation stands out.
“I’m proud of our downtown and what we have done and how it looks during the summer when we have all our tourists,” she said.
Other major projects during her tenure include a long-running effort to improve flood protection through Reedsport’s levee system. The city has also worked to acquire forestland around the Clear Lake watershed, which supplies its drinking water.
As she prepares to step down, McCollum said persistence is essential in local government.
“You have to be patient and just keep working on it and not let it go,” she said.
Guest
- Linda McCollum, mayor, Reedsport
