Coins for Kids Charities benefit from annual fundraising drive. PAge 7 Breaking barriers Technology helps students with disabilities. PAge B1 Artist’s world Russ Morland imagines new landscapes in art show. PAge 3
ing n Home Heat o re it /L ¢ 0 1 Save until April Oil from now
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City eliminates seven managers I
No plans to close terminal
Two eMPloyees offered buyout packages.
By KArl yu THE NEwS BULLETiN
While B.C. Ferries and the provincial government announced ferr y route cuts recently, it appears none of N a n a i m o ’s f e r r y terminals will be closed. Reductions to ferry sailings, including some for the Gabriola Island run, were announced last week and while there was talk of possible closures to either the Duke Point or Departure Bay terminals, Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure Todd Stone said that isn’t the case – for the time being. “ T h e re a re n o plans at this point to close down either of the terminals in Nanaimo,” Stone said during a conference at the Nanaimo Port Authority office Tu e s d a y. “ W h a t we’re committed to, which I announced a week and a half ago, was we are undertaking further analysis with B.C. Ferries on the two terminals here, as well as Horseshoe Bay and Tsawwassen.” u See ‘CUTS’ /6
VOL. 25, NO. 70
By TAmArA CunninghAm THE NEwS BULLETiN
CHRIS BUSH/THe NewS BUlleTIN
Crumby cravings
Don Phipps enjoys the simple pleasure of feeding pigeons on the waterfront Monday. The birds find graham cracker crumbs irresistible and will perch on Phipps’s fingers to get first dibs on the tidbits.
Quality & Service at Budget Prices
Nanaimo’s new top bureaucrat has offered two buyouts and axed seven high-level positions in a major city hall shakeup. City manager Ted Swabey announced the internal restructuring at an open meeting Monday, calling it a chance to cut costs and hit the “reset button” on how the organization meets the needs of the community and council. The reorganization – anticipated to be one of the largest at city hall in recent history – will save Nanaimo an estimated $1 million annually by the second year and help officials better address strategic priorities and succession planning, according to Swabey. As part of the change, the city will see a new cultural division and the merger of several departments. The leadership team will also be dissolved to make way for direct reporting between senior employees and the city manager’s office; seven high-level positions will be cut and two directors offered buy-
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outs. The terms of the buyouts are still being negotiated. Swabey says the shuffle will add younger employees to the management deck. With half of the senior management team eligible to retire in the next five years, the new faces are the next wave of toplevel city staff and part of its succession strategy, he said. The changes are also expected to help line up the city’s internal structure with four main priorities in the strategic plan, including cultural vitality. Swabey said people might have questioned how the city is addressing culture and whether it was considered important because they couldn’t see where it fit into the organization. Now, there will be an independent culture and heritage department in place for two years. “Every time a renewal is needed in an organization, a new manager comes in or a new council or a new strategic plan, it’s a very common part of the process to make sure your structure aligns with your priorities,” Swabey said. “I am very excited about it ... there are opportunities for us and staff to be engaged and enthusiastic about the direction we are going.” u See ‘SUCCESSION’ /4
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