Matt Sturgis will serve as the president of the Greater Portland Council of Governments for the next two years.

Matt Sturgis, Cape Elizabeth’s longtime tax assessor and chairman of the Gray Town Council, is the newest president of the Greater Portland Council of Governments.

Sturgis, of Gray, previously served as the organization’s First Vice President. At its annual meeting, June 17, the organization’s General Assembly, the policy-making body of the organization, elected Sturgis to serve as its president for a two-year term. Ed Suslovic of Portland previously held the position.

The Greater Portland Council of Governments is a voluntary nonprofit organization that has served 26 municipalities, public service agencies and citizens in Greater Portland since 1969. It focuses on areas of transportation planning, economic and community development and GIS mapping.

Sturgis said he is looking forward to fulfilling his new role during the next two years.

“(The) biggest project we have on the books right now, from the board’s standpoint, is the finalization of the strategic planning process,” he said.

In addition, the board will be searching for a new executive director to replace Neal Allen, whose term ends within the next year, said Sturgis.

Tom Blake, of South Portland, will now serve as the First Vice President of the organization, and Anne Krieg, of Bridgton, will serve as the Second Vice President.

Before becoming First Vice President in 2013, Sturgis served as Second Vice President, and has been an executive board member and a steering committee member of the council of governments for the past six years.

In addition to working as the chief tax assessor in Cape Elizabeth and town councilor in Gray, Sturgis became Scarborough’s chief tax assessor in April. A certified general appraiser, Sturgis has also been running his own company, Sturgis Appraisals, in Gray since 1992.

Sturgis also serves as the Cape Elizabeth staff liaison to the town’s senior Citizen Advisory Commission and is the chairman of the Maine chapter of the American Lung Association.

According to Neal Allen, the organization’s executive director, Sturgis is a great fit for the position. As a municipal employee and town leader, said Allen, Sturgis’ experience in town government is complementary to his new role as president.

“He has shown strong interest and commitment to the organization,” he said, “and we look forward to working with him in the next few months as we go forward.”

Matt Sturgis