Fire chief Mike Moore will be the interim chief administrative officer for the Town of Creston, Mayor Ron Toyota announced today.
Moore takes over on a temporary basis until after the October 20 municipal elections, replacing Lou Varela, whose employment finishes this week. Prior to the hiring of Varela, the CAO position was rotated through the roster of senior managers. Varela is assuming the CAO position in Oak Bay on Vancouver Island on an eight-month interim basis, she said today.
Toyota said that Moore was appointed because of his experience with two key issues facing Creston—dealing with floods, fires and landslides is a priority while an emergency management program is negotiated with the RDCK, as is developing a long term solution to address the deficiencies of the existing fire hall.
“Mike brings over 25 years of dedicated leadership and local government experience to this role. We recognize this time as being critical for our organization,” Toyota said. “We have the utmost confidence that he will provide the continuity and stability that is needed at this time.”
Toyota added that emergency services and the fire hall issue gave Council a sense of urgency to have direct access “to the best possible resource at the highest staff level in the organization.”
“It is the opinion of this council that this strategic decision represents good governance as we forge ahead over the next few months, working for the betterment of both our organization and our community, Importantly, we are confident that the operational needs of the fire department can be managed effectively through this interim transition,” Toyota said in a press release.
“In addition, we are fortunate to have a talented senior management team that works well together and that is supportive of this structure to ensure the quality of Council’s decision making over this critical period. After the 2018 municipal election, Council will decide upon a recruitment process for the permanent full-time CAO position.”
