KINDERSLEY — The countdown is on to a transition in Kindersley’s top civic post.
Marty Baroni has been hired to succeed Audrey Hebert as the town’s chief administrative officer and will assume the role effective Oct. 1.
According to a news release from the City of Warman, where he worked as city manager for just under a year before he was dismissed in March (as reported by the Clark’s Crossing Gazette), Baroni also holds previous experience as chief administrative officer for the Town of Biggar and as a Kerrobert town councillor.
Hebert, meanwhile, is retiring after 18-plus years with the town. She has served as CAO since September 2018, following 11 years in positions including finance director and director of corporate services, along with 10 years of service as administrator for the RM of Kindersley.
“She had a real broad scope of both rural and urban administrative duties, especially on the financial end, so it was a really natural fit for her to take over the CAO position,” Kindersley mayor Ken Francis said in a recent interview.
Francis, who served on town council from 2016-18 and was elected mayor last November after six years in provincial office, praised Hebert’s attention to detail and process as well as her outgoing personality.
“It was a really good working relationship we had and we’re going to miss her,” Francis continued. “When she first tendered her resignation we were obviously super concerned that it was going to be difficult (to replace her) as we didn’t know what the field was going to be like or how many applicants we were going to get.
“Fortunately, Audrey was part of the process a year and a half ago when we started courting Marty before he went to Warman, and we thought that’s a sign things were meant to be.”
In recruiting Hebert’s replacement Francis added that council desired as much continuity as possible in its relationship with administration.
“One thing I will say is our council is very hands-on and not every administration is used to that or willing to work with that, and one thing Marty’s found quite quickly is that when you’ve got an engaged, hands-on council, it’s not just run with it. It’s you’ve got to bounce things off the mayor and deputy mayor and the total of council sometimes even with things that maybe seem kind of basic, but it’s still just a big town here. It’s not a city,” Francis said, further describing Baroni as “very approachable” with a “very defusing kind of personality.”
The winds of change are also blowing with deputy administrator and transportation director Kim Vogel also set to retire later this year. Vogel will be succeeded in the transportation and environmental services role by Chad Levitt, who is filling the position on an interim basis until Vogel’s departure.
“She’s been a really, really good employee over the years,” Francis said of Vogel. “When she announced her retirement not long after Audrey it’s like ‘Oh boy, people are fleeing, it must be the mayor.’ But Chad stepped into the role and is doing a good job, and Kim’s still giving him some advice here and there when he needs it.”
Hebert did not reply to an emailed interview request and town communications coordinator Anna Polsfut did not make either Hebert or Baroni available for comment following an Aug. 6 request.
