Staff Report: Deputy Corporate Officer Appointment

BACKGROUND

The Community Charter requires each municipality to appoint a Corporate Officer to oversee the following duties and functions:

• Ensuring that accurate minutes of the meetings of Council and Council committees are prepared;
• Ensuring that the minutes, bylaws and other records of the business of Council and Council committees are maintained and kept safe;
• Ensuring that access is provided to records of Council and Council committees;
• Administering oaths and taking affirmations, affidavits and declarations;
• Certifying copies of bylaws and other documents;
• Accepting, on behalf of the Council or municipality, notices and documents that are required or permitted to be given to, served on, filed with or otherwise provided to Council or the municipality; and
• Keeping the corporate seal, if any, and having it affixed to documents as required (Langford does not use a corporate seal).

Council has appointed Marie Watmough, Deputy Director of Corporate Services to act as the Corporate Officer.

In addition, the Community Charter provides for the appointment of one or more Deputy Corporate Officers to carry out the above noted duties in the place of the Corporate Officer. Historically, the City has had multiple Deputy Corporate Officers, including all of the Directors and the Executive Assistant. Staff are recommending that only the CAO, the Director of Corporate Services and the Executive Assistant positions are needed to act as Deputy Corporate Officers. The purpose of this report is to seek council direction with respect to the Deputy Corporate Officer appointments.

COMMENTARY

Council for the City has, over time, appointed a Corporate Officer and several Deputy Corporate Officers. The current appointees are:

• Deputy Director of Corporate Services Marie Watmough is Corporate Officer
• The following are Deputy Corporate Officers:
  • Chief Administrative Officer Darren Kiedyk
  • Director of Corporate Services Braden Hutchins
  • Director of Engineering Michelle Mahovlich
  • Director of Finance Michael Dillabaugh
  • Director of Planning Matthew Baldwin
  • Manager of Legislative Services Will Ying-udomrat
  • Executive Assistant Julie Coneybeer
• All of the persons named above are also staff signing authorities for Council-approved documents such as contracts.

While the appointees have the authority set out above, in practice the Corporate Officer carries out the majority of those duties on a daily basis. The Executive Assistant does witness Land Title documents which is very helpful given her proximity to the signatories. It is important to have at least one deputy to act in the absence of the Corporate Officer; however, staff are recommending that having both the CAO and the Director of Corporate Services, in addition to the Executive Assistant would be sufficient.

Should Council determine that they would like to keep all of the current Deputy Corporate Officer appointees, Council should rescind the appointment of Will Ying-Udomrat as he is no longer with the City, as well as Michelle Mahovlich, as she is soon to be retiring from her role with the City. Further, Council may wish to appoint Katelyn Balzer and Yari Nielsen as Deputy Corporate Officers, making all Directors also Deputy Corporate Officers.

FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS

None.

LEGAL IMPLICATIONS

The City is required to have a Corporate Officer. In addition, it is prudent to have Deputy Corporate Officer appointees to carry out the duties in the absence of the Corporate Officer.

OPTIONS

Option 1

THAT Council:
Rescind the appointments of each of Will Ying-udomrat, Michelle Mahovlich, Michael Dillabaugh and Matthew Baldwin as Deputy Corporate Officer;

OR

Option 2

THAT Council appoint Katelyn Balzer, Director of Engineering and Public Works, and Yari Nielsen, Director of Parks, Recreation and Facilities, as Deputy Corporate Officer;

AND

Rescind the appointment of Will Ying-udomrat and Michelle Mahovlich as Deputy Corporate Officer.

SUBMITTED BY

Marie Watmough, Deputy Director of Corporate Services

Concurrence:
Donna Petrie, Senior Manager of Business Development and Events
Concurrence:
Yari Nielsen, Director of Parks, Recreation and Facilities
Concurrence:
Matthew Baldwin, MCIP, RPP, Director of Planning and Subdivision
Concurrence:
Katelyn Balzer, P.Eng, Director of Engineering and Public Works
Concurrence:
Michael Dillabaugh, CPA, CA, Director of Finance
Concurrence: Braden Hutchins, Director of Corporate Services
Concurrence:
Darren Kiedyk, Chief Administrative Officer