Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott will reorganize his top staff for the second time in six months, elevating adviser John David “J.D.” Merrill to his chief of staff and moving current Chief of Staff Calvin Young to a deputy mayor position.

The move, effective Dec. 1, marks the end of a brief tenure in the top post for Young, a longtime friend of the mayor and his former campaign treasurer. Young assumed the job, a quiet but powerful position in the administration, in April, replacing Marvin James, Scott’s chief of staff for about two years.

Merrill, who is currently Scott’s deputy chief of staff, joined the administration in July 2023 in that role. A former teacher and administrator with Baltimore City Public Schools, Merrill served temporarily as deputy mayor for equity, health and human services for about a year. He also ran an unsuccessful campaign for state Senate in 2018, losing to Jill Carter.

Merrill will be the fifth chief of staff for Scott, who was elected mayor in December 2020. Michael Huber, a top adviser to Scott when he was City Council president, initially held the position. Chezia Cager served a six-month stint in the post before she was asked to take a lower-ranking position in the administration. James, who previously served as Scott’s campaign manager, took the position in 2023 as the mayor entered a contested bid for reelection.

In an interview, Scott likened Merrill to a Swiss Army knife. He has experience working across the administration, Scott said.

“When the Key Bridge collapsed, it was J.D. that I assigned to be a leader on that. J.D. has been leading on opioids,” Scott said. “He has my deepest level of trust.”

Young will become deputy mayor for economic development, a position vacated in August by Justin Williams, who was named the city’s permit czar. Willams was one of several staffers moved following the bungled rollout of the city’s permitting platform.

Scott said Young, a graduate of Harvard Business School who has worked in the business sector, is a natural fit for the position.

“We didn’t have to go out and search for a person that brings in ... the business experience and has a relationship with the community and understands economic development,” Scott said. “Calvin’s right there.”

Young’s brief tenure as chief of staff was a period marked by some frustration for the mayor, but it also wasn’t without accomplishment. The administration recently finalized an agreement with 14 major nonprofit institutions, including the Johns Hopkins University and the University of Maryland Medical System, to pay the city $48 million over the next five years to assist with services. Young led negotiations on the deal with the organizations, which mostly don’t pay property taxes, to gradually double their annual payments.

Replacing James, a self-admitted “wartime” adviser, Young promised a calmer posture, although he engaged in fights of his own. With him at the helm and other new City Council leaders across the table, the city’s budget negotiations were more contentious this year compared with years past. Several times, Young pulled back the curtain, saying the quiet part aloud: He wanted to control the “narrative” around the budget process.

In an interview with The Banner at the time, Young accused Councilwoman Odette Ramos of creating a “public spectacle” after an emotional budget hearing in which she and the city’s head of immigrant affairs, Catalina Rodriguez-Lima, were moved to tears as they spoke about families ripped apart by deportations. Young apologized for the remark.

The $4.6 billion spending plan passed by a 13-2 vote, belying the controversy.

Young said his move to the economic development side of the administration was something officials were “teetering” on. He said the city has large-scale opportunities with the redevelopment of Harborplace and the Baltimore Convention Center, and Scott’s $3 billion plan to rehabilitate vacant homes.

“There’s a big nut to crack here,” he said. “I’m thrilled the mayor has trusted me with this portfolio.”

Merrill said he will bring his experience from public school administration to serving as chief of staff. He worked for two years as the special assistant to Alison Perkins-Cohen, chief of staff for city schools.

“Strong classrooms, strong schools, they really have something in common. They have strong systems, strong culture,” he said. “I view this job very similarly.”

Multiple staff changes in the Scott administration in the last year have led to a ballooning of salaries. Williams, who moved to permit czar, kept his deputy mayor salary of $227,000. James, who transitioned to a special adviser role after stepping away from the chief of staff position, remained on payroll but took a lower salary.

As chief of staff, Young was paid $250,000, more than the $231,000 James was paid for the role.

Asked if Young would keep that salary as deputy mayor, Scott said that was still being worked out. He noted the deputy mayor of economic development has been considered an “upper deputy mayor” role.

Scott said Merrill’s salary also was under consideration. Merrill was paid $166,500 in fiscal year 2024, the most recently available data.