The good news is there are plenty of good jobs available in North Battleford.
The bad news for North Battleford City Hall is they are the ones who need to look for new people after the departures of two highly-respected staffers in the past month.
Finance Director Matthew Hartney resigned earlier this month to accept a position in municipal government in Huntsville, Ont.
His new role will be executive director of public infrastructure in that community, with broad managerial responsibilities for public works, parks and recreation and town-owned properties. Huntsville is a community of 19,000 located in the Muskoka cottage-country region of Ontario, about two hours north of Toronto.
He described it to reporters as an "executive role that we don't have necessarily in our government," referring to the work structure at North Battleford City Hall.
Hartney's final day on the job in North Battleford is Sept. 6, and his new job in Huntsville begins Sept. 30.
His departure comes quickly on the heels of the resignation of the city's long time Director of Business Development Denis Lavertu.
Lavertu has departed for a job in the private sector. He is now vice-president of marketing and development/partner with IronJet Media, a marketing and promotional company. Lavertu started his new job this month.
Monday's council meeting was Hartney's last one before his departure. At that meeting he thanked the City and the community for having him there.
"My wife and I will be sad to leave North Battleford," said Hartney.
The move to Huntsville signals a return to Ontario for Hartney. He worked in Ottawa for a number of years in finance capacities before taking on the finance director's job in March 2012.
In speaking to reporters after the meeting, Hartney said family reasons were behind his move, with his wife desiring to be closer to her mother.
"My wife is very close with her mother, and would like to be closer to the family with us having young ones, and our family to be closer to the grandparents for the kids to grow up."
He had not anticipated moving so soon, he said, but the opportunity came up and he was forced to make that decision right away.
Of his time in North Battleford, Hartney said he'll most remember the times he would spend walking to work downtown. "I've never once been harassed or felt unsafe - in fact, quite the contrary."
"It's one of the few cities where, if you pass someone on the street, they would smile and greet you," he said. "That's a rarity in today's world, especially in Canada."
Hartney also thanked his boss City Manager Jim Toye. "He was one of the reasons I came here, and it was one of the toughest decisions to actually leave because he was an amazing boss and such a well-respected individual across Canada. I've been fortunate to work for him."
