by EVAN MATTHEWS
The Village of Valemount has found a new Chief Administrative Officer (CAO).
The Village has named Adam Davey, originally of Prince George, to the position. According to his Linkedin profile, Davey worked for 10 months as the administration manager for the Squamish First Nation, in North Vancouver from May 2016 until present.
Davey holds a Masters of Public Administration degree from the Royal Military College of Canada, in Kingston, Ontario, and a BA in Political Science from the University of Northern British Columbia, in Prince George, according to the Village, and he is also a member of the Project Management Institute.
A veteran of Afghanistan, Mr. Davey has continued to serve as an Army Primary Reserve officer with the Seaforth Highlanders of Canada, a Village press release reads.
The Village says Davey has significant experience in Emergency Management planning, having worked with other municipalities and organizations in the Lower Mainland as a consultant — concurrent to military service.
Davey takes over from interim-CAO, Gord Simmons, who was named to the position in late September. Prior to his time in Squamish, Davey served nearly a decade in the Canadian Armed Forces as an Infantry Officer with Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry, according to the Village.
Davey will be moving here with his wife, Brighdie — a registered nurse — and their two sons, aged two and six, the Village says.
Though interim-CAO Simmons was retired prior to his service, he took the position in Valemount based on his pre-existing relationship with the mayor, as Simmons had spent 25 years working for the Regional District of Fraser-Fort George’s planning department.
Simmons replaced former-CAO Mark Macneill — whose stint was short-lived — as he was hired in March 2016 and subsequently dismissed in August 2016.
The Village says Davey has significant experience in Emergency Management planning, having worked with other municipalities and organizations in the Lower Mainland as a consultant — concurrent to military service.
Dating back to the last municipal election in November 2014, the Village has had three full-time CAOs, respectively, not including interim positions.
An interim-CAO, Ken Wiesner, filled the gap between Yanciw and Macneill’s respective employment, the same way interim-CAO Simmons bridged the gap between Macneill and Davey’s respective employment.
Macneill was hired in relief of former CAO, Anne Yanciw, who spent 4.5 years with the Village of Valemount, three of those as CAO.
In 2015, the newly elected mayor and Council hired an outside firm to conduct an organizational review, which included a review of the relationship between the mayor and CAO. The $20,000 report pointed to a strained relationship between CAO and the mayor and said it was important to solve, as it was compromising Village operations and public confidence in staff and Council.
The report, released in June 2015, suggested the Village was run efficiently, and said while the relationship needed mending — there was no cause for terminating the CAO.
Despite the report, Yanciw was let go that summer. She is now the CAO of Smithers, B.C.
