By Simon Druker
Staff Writer
Wednesday May 07, 2008
In what may come as a surprise move to residents, Sturgeon County Commissioner Larry Kirkpatrick resigned from his post this past week. No reason was given for the resignation in the terse press release issued on Friday May 2nd from the county. When contacted at home, Mr. Kirkpatrick declined comment. Kirkpatrick had been with Sturgeon County for the last 30 years. There were no indications from either side that this was coming.
Council was very tight lipped about the situation. Karen Shaw, Councillor for Division Six would only say that “It’s an HR issue.”
The timing of the resignation seems a bit peculiar. Council met in camera during the regularly scheduled meeting (which Kirkpatrick attended) on April 29th for over 2 and a half hours. While no explanation was given as to the content of the meeting, a motion was immediately put forth to vote on the in camera issue. Mayor Don Rigney, along with Councillors Shaw, Joe Milligan and Don McGeachy voted in favour of the motion, while Councillors Jerry Kaup, Mark Oberg and Ken McGillis opposed it. It is unknown at this time if the two incidents are related. In theory, Council has the right to terminate any position without reason.
With the sudden departure of Kirkpatrick, Director of Corporate Services, Case Van Herk will take over the position of County Commissioner on an interim basis. Van Herk has been with the county for the past 28 years, the last 10 as the Director of Corporate Services. County Council will “Be actively seeking a new County Commissioner over the coming months,” according to the press release.
The interim tag means an added work load for Van Herk, who has begun to divest himself of his duties as Corporate Services Director.
Kirkpatrick served under numerous different Councils, building up relationships with the various industries taking up root in Sturgeon County. One must wonder if the lack of an immediate successor could damage these relationships and in turn, have a negative effect on the county. One source close to the incident called Kirkpatrick the best County Commissioner in Alberta. Another source added that Kirkpatrick knew the county like the back of his hand.
Hiring a new Commissioner is a considerable task to undertake, especially for a Council that has only been together for six months. It is a vital position and the wrong choice could have wide ranging adverse effects. Not having a chosen successor ready to step into the void seems to mean that either the county wasn’t expecting this move, or Kirkpatrick wasn’t expecting it. Either way, the situation promises to get clearer in the coming weeks.
Publisher: Sonia Fedorus Proprietor and published by Bowes Publishers Limited at 10205 100 Avenue, Morinville, Alberta, Canada T8R 1P9
