Turnover among senior staffers at the District of Houston is continuing with the departures now of finance director Greg LeBlanc and operations manager Chris Lawrence.
Lawrence has left for a similar position with the Town of Smithers and it’s not immediately known where LeBlanc, whose last week on the job was last week, may be headed.
Lawrence was hired in early 2020, replacing Paul Gordon who passed away in the fall of 2019. Roland Ofner is now the interim operations manager pending the appointment of a permanent one.
LeBlanc was hired in January, replacing David Ni who resigned in Sept. 2020 after signing on with the District in May 2019. The application deadline for this job is Oct. 22.
Other recent shifts include the departure in the summer of 2020 of corporate services director Jennifer Bruns. She was replaced as of Sept. 2020 by Duncan Malkinson who came to the position from a job at the District of Fort St. James. He left, however, this past July for a job with the Town of Smithers.
The post of corporate services director was then filled by Holly Brown who had been the deputy corporate services officer and also its grant writer. Since then Madelaine Swift has been hired to be the deputy corporate services officer and grant writer.
The District also lost its long-serving leisure services director in the summer when Tasha Kelly moved to Prince George. That position was quickly filled when Cassie Ofner was hired.
But the most significant change in senior positions came with the departure in July of the District’s top employee, chief administrative officer Gerald Pinchbeck for a similar position in Vanderhoof.
That vacancy is being temporarily filled by Martin Swift, who has had significant public sector experience in Alberta, while the District searches for a permanent chief administrative officer.
The District has hired a search company and applications for the position close Oct. 12.