NIPAWIN – On Nov. 25 and 26, the Town of Nipawin hosted a workshop for municipal officials on training in communication between council and administration.
There has been an increase in council conflicts with administration according to the 2023 ombudsman annual report. Top municipal issues raised in 2023 were complaints regarding code of ethics breaches and conflict of interest of elected municipal officials.
Michelle Sorenson, Nipawin’s CAO, said more than 16 municipalities attended. Five of these were rural municipalities. The Town of Nipawin received a grant of $10,162.00 from the Targeted Sector Support Program. The Targeted Sector Support (TSS) Initiative uses a portion of municipal revenue sharing, approximately $1.5 million per fiscal year to support projects that strengthen municipalities’ core operational capabilities through increased regional cooperation.
Marlon Zacharias, Nipawin’s Mayor said, “This was my second time participating in a George Cuff seminar, the first being in 2016 as a board member with the Nipawin Chamber of Commerce. Mr. Cuff brings a great mix of straightforward governance explanations and examples for how a breakdown of strong governance can hamper a council. In this seminar, there were two key points that I was able to take away. The first being a need to always maintain a professional level of communication between members of the council and administration. Secondly, I was happy to see how most of his recommended requirements of good governance were already in place and working well at all levels; Nipawin is on the right track.”
Sorenson said, “A key takeaway for staff was clarification of the roles and responsibilities of both council and staff. Especially the relationship between council and administration, in particular how everything should flow through the CAO.”
