A community development director for the City of Newport Beach has been promoted to serve as one of two assistant city managers, according to an Aug. 22 press release issued by the city.
Seimone Jurjis has served as a director for the city since 2017, and will continue his work in that role, while managing special projects as an assistant to the city manager, according to the press release.
“Seimone has been a tremendous asset to the City management team for many years,” said City Manager Grace Leung in the release announcing his promotion. “This new role will give him a higher level of management responsibility and oversight to help carry out the City Council’s vision and direction for Newport Beach.”
Mr. Jurjis—who lives and was raised in the City of Orange—currently oversees a staff of 60 managing the city’s General Plan—which provides goals and policies to determine how it can grow—as well as property and environmental regulations.
“The department has become more efficient and streamlined in recent years under [Jurjis’s] leadership,” city officials said, including the implementation of online permit services and a reworked program for accessory dwellings—small housing units located on the same lot as a single-family home—also known as ADUs.
Mr. Jurjis has a Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering from California State University–Fullerton and is a licensed civil engineer, real estate broker, and certified building official, according to the press release.
Before his role as a director, he was the city’s chief building official since 2011.
According to the city, Mr. Jurjis has “more than 30 years of experience in both the private and public sectors” and also worked as the president and chief operating officer for a real estate company that specialized in entitlements, which are agreements between a private or public entity for constructing various buildings.
Prior to working for the city, Mr. Jurjis worked for a construction corporation and for the cities of El Segundo and West Hollywood in planning, building safety, and as an engineer.
