At the February 25 regional board meeting, the qathet Regional District (qRD) board approved the addition of two new financial services staff positions.
According to a media release, qRD continues to experience increased demands and desires by the province and public, and must adapt to meet these demands. In an effort to mitigate effects of increasing workloads, the regional board made the decision to add the two positions.
“qathet Regional District has made great strides in our level of transparency since our earlier years,” stated board chair Patrick Brabazon. “Thanks to additional staff support, we have been able to provide more detailed budgets, offer greater oversight to service delivery budgets and ensure taxpayers dollars are being utilized effectively for overall community benefit.”
Chief administrative officer Al Radke stated that although qRD’s overall public profile may be low, it is a very industrious and busy organization.
The release stated the goal of the new positions is to alleviate workloads, therefore reducing insurance and WorkSafeBC claims, and taking action in cost leadership by implementing preventative measures. The positions will allow the department to improve development and maintenance of long term planning and financing for capital projects to realize cost savings and minimize borrowing costs, according to the release, and the financial services department can improve on grant preparation, social procurement strategies, as well as provide added financial procurement oversight to our volunteer fire departments.
Manager of financial services Linda Greenan stated the financial services department plays an essential role in assisting all qRD departments to achieve regional board priorities.
“The addition of these two staff positions will strengthen oversight of taxpayer dollars,” stated Greenan. “and will enhance the clarity and consistency of our organization’s financial planning and reporting.”
