By David F. Rooney
Tim Palmer, the City’s top bureaucrat, announced his retirement on Friday, February 13.
Palmer began his career in the private sector but moved to public service in 1991 with the Resort Municipality of Whistler. He also served as superintendent of utilities in Trail and director of engineering and public works in Summerland before moving to Burns Lake as chief administrative officer. He moved to Revelstoke four years ago with his wife Jacquie (an excellent and creative potter) to fill the same role after the departure of Ross McPhee.
Colleagues said Palmer streamlined operations at City Hall,
“He has led our community through four budget years and has moved our organization forward effectively and efficiently,” Finance Director Graham Inglis said in a statement from City Hall. “Tim helped lead the development of the City’s goals and objectives and continuously challenged his staff to ‘pursue excellence.’ We will miss his leadership.”
Speaking for City Council, Councillor Linda Nixon thanked Palmer for his contribution and said she believed “he will be kept very busy mentoring young professionals and… he will be in demand as a consultant by many communities.”
Not everyone will be sad to witness his departure. Palmer gained local notoriety after an unsuccessful attempt to ‘discipline’ a popular and widely respected senior manager during the last election campaign.
Mayor Mark McKee, a frequent critic, said he could not comment on Palmer’s retirement.
However, you didnt have to be a rocket scientist to guess that something was going on. Palmer was, uncharacteristically, not present at either of City Council’s two meetings this year and some Council members professed not to know where he was or what was going on.
