Mayor Herb Pond seems to have confirmed what has been a fairly steady part of the Prince Rumour mill for a few months now on the topic of senior staff members.
That as the Mayor responded to questions posted on his Facebook page related to the current debate over the use of the Alternative Approval Process towards upcoming infrastructure loans ... one of which asked if City Manager Robert Buchan actually lives in the city full time.
The reply seemingly confirming for residents that the City's top administrator is commuting to and from the city when it comes to his work duties, seemingly not from Port Edward.
Mr. Pond's answer acknowledges the current scenario and would also seem to provide an explanation as to why the City Manager has only been in Council chambers for four of the twelve meetings this year, participating in most by remote methods, absent from the proceedings on other occasions.
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| A snapshot of a City Council session from earlier this year with City Manager Robert Buchan participating by remote connection |
The Mayor's short synopsis however, comes without much background as to what kind of arrangement has been put in place to make it all work, the hiring having taken place over a year prior to Mr. Pond's return to elected civic office.
Nor does the Mayor's brief response explain how much time is actually spent in the city by the City Manager when it comes to the tending to the issues of the day.
The Mayor's commentary does provide for a strong endorsement of the work of Mr. Buchan who was announced as the new City Manager in October 2021, following his time previous as the city's contract planner.
And over the last year and nine months it does seem as though his experience has been valuable to the city since he took on the new duties, steering the city forward on housing plans and dealing with the current infrastructure concerns to name a few areas of note.
While its not an unusual practice for civic officials to live in one community and work in another, its usually something which is found in the larger cities of the lower mainland, Vancouver Island or Okangan where civic officials live in nearby suburbs.
Any commute to Prince Rupert, unless from Terrace, Kitimat or Port Edward, is something which is really quite a bit different.
The current City Council members from the period of the hiring in 2021, probably should explain how they came to the decision to make for the allowance of a long distance relationship for their top civic staffer.
The post after all, being one of the top paying positions with the City of Prince Rupert.
The arrangement, would seem to be a bit more than a distraction as the mayor describes it.
If it's working we should hear how it serves the community, but if there have been concerns heard whether from Council members behind closed doors, or from other stakeholders involved with the city we should be told of those as well.
Another area for clarification for the public, should be if this is just a one time situation, or if the remote management program has been in place for a period of time and how many more civic officials, current or previous may have taken part in the unique career opportunity offered in Prince Rupert.
Regardless, it should make for some discussion and explanation towards how the process works and considering everyone's laser focus on financial issues, if there have been any additional expenses incurred to make the arrangement a success as it has moved forward.
Beyond all that, if indeed the City Manager's City Hall office is vacant, the city may want to lease it out at a market rental rate and put the money towards the infrastructure loan requirement, especially since city residents are being asked to do their share through increased taxation and utility fees.
More notes on Civic themes can be explored through our achieve page.
Cross posted from the North Coast Review.
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