The Regional District of East Kootenay board of directors has a new chair and vice chair.

Meeting this morning (Dec. 9) for the first time since the Nov. 19 municipal election, the board’s second order of duty was to elect a new executive. Their first order was to swear their oaths of office and to sign the register, with regional barrister Don Paolini conducting the official ceremony.

Not surprisingly, veteran director Rob Gay, of Electoral Area C, beginning his third term on the board, was the sole nominee for chair, with District of Elkford Mayor Dean McKerracher putting forth his nomination.

An election was required to select the vice chair, as Electoral Area G director Gerry Wilkie nominated District of Invermere Mayor Gerry Taft, McKerracher nominated Electoral Area F director Wendy Booth and Booth nominated Electoral Area A director Mike Sosnowski.

Each nominated director accepted and was given two minutes to address the board.

Taft, entering his second term as mayor and fourth term as an elected official on Invermere council, as well as second term at the regional table, said he enjoys his work with the regional board and would “like to keep giving back to this organization. It is an honour to be on the board.”

Booth, beginning her second term as Area F director, noted she has the time and the ability to do the job and looked forward to doing so.

And Sosnowski, beginning his third term as Area A director, said he would enjoy providing support for the chair and be a sounding board for him and the other board members.

Taft captured the vice chair seat with seven votes, while Booth had six and Sosnowski two.

“It is an honour to be elected RDEK board chair,” said Gay, beginning his first term as board chair. “I am looking forward to the new opportunities and responsibilities this position will bring and am eager to continue to move our region forward.”

Gay was first elected to the RDEK board in and has also served three years as vice chair and five years as the chair of the RDEK’s Planning Committee.

Once assuming his position at the head of the table, Gay welcomed the new directors to the table and thanked the directors who served before them. New to the board are District of Sparwood Mayor Lois Halco, City of Fernie Mayor Mary Giuliano, City of Cranbrook Mayor Wayne Stetski and city councillor Bob Whetham. City of Kimberley Mayor Ron McRae returns to the board that he sat on between 2002 and 2005.

Not returning to the board are former Cranbrook Mayor Scott Manjak and city councillor Liz Schnatshneider, District of Sparwood acting Mayor Gayle Travis, former Kimberley Mayor Jim Ogilvie and former Fernie Mayor Cindy Corrigan.

Gay informed the new directors that while the initial meetings may be alien and may fly past, but they will soon be up to speed.

“Six years ago I thought, my God, I’m never going to learn this,” he said.

Gay added that he’s looking forward to working with the new board and wants to “give the 55,000 residents in the East Kootenay good government. I want to prove that the RDEK is one of the best regional districts” as it is referred to in provincial circles.

He said a way to ensure the best government possible is to conduct reviews or measurements. “It’s not going to be an onerous process; just a little bit of a scorecard to see where we are making progress, or not.”

Taft said he was pleased to be elected vice chair. “This is an exciting new chapter for me. I am grateful for this opportunity to expand my knowledge and skills in local government and am excited to work with Chair Gay and the entire board in the coming year.”

The board chair and vice chair are elected annually at the December RDEK board meeting.

On an interesting side note, and offering a slightly surreal visage to experienced RDEK watchers, was the appearance of former long-time RDEK planning director Bob Whetham seated at the board table.

“This is kind of a novel experience for me,” Whetham admitted, noting he first appeared in the board room several decades prior as a delegation and then became a regional staff member,

before retiring four years ago.

Ian Cobb/e-KNOW

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