(rdnewsNOW/Josh Hall)

By Josh Hall (Twitter: @Vancan19)

new city manager

City Manager Allan Seabrooke in it for the long haul in Red Deer

May 13, 2019 | 5:26 PM

On his first day at work, Red Deer’s new city manager say he is all in on ensuring he can provide the best advice to council and that our city can move forward prosperously.

Allan Seabrooke, who was announced as the retired Craig Curtis’s replacement earlier this month, was introduced to the media on Monday ahead of his first council meeting.

A former CAO in Peterborough, Ontario, Seabrooke has also held positions for the City of Waterloo, Otonabee Region Conservation Authority, the Town of Aurora, City of Markham, City of Mississauga, and City of Elliot Lake.

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“Red Deer has all the attributes of a great city. There are so many great things here that the community has built and councils have built in the past. I’m very familiar with some of the issues we have here in Red Deer,” he said when asked about crime and drug use.

“When I made the decision to go in the competition to come to Red Deer, I did a lot of research.”

That research included, he said, the City’s strategic plan as approved by council which he believes does a very good job of taking into account the feedback of citizens.

“People love living in Red Deer and they’re very pleased with the work that mayor and council have done in this community. That comes from listening to what your residents are telling you,” he remarked.

“Calgary and Edmonton both have special agreements that were signed with the Province for guaranteed funding based on percentages and the next step will be Red Deer,” continued Seabrooke.

“We are the third largest city in this province. We are just as important as Calgary and Edmonton so that Alberta prospers.”

It was spring 2018 when Seabrooke stepped down from the CAO role in Peterborough, something he said at the time and reiterated Monday that he didn’t view as a demotion.

Following the move, he took over the City’s community services portfolio.

“The way I look at it with senior leadership teams, whether it’s a city manager or all of your directors, it’s a team that really makes a City work,” he explained. “When everyone’s at the same table, it really does not matter either way. It was a specific circumstance that the City of Peterborough needed at the time, and I felt I needed to make that change to protect the City.”

Also while with the City of Peterborough, Seabrooke was a part of the team that completed final designs for a twin pad OHL-level arena, and a $60 million competitive pool.

“A competitive pool gives you the advantage of hosting some other events. As per our strategic plan, trying to bring more economic vitality to the community, bringing regional events, provincial events, and as we saw with the Canada Winter Games, is hugely important,” he said, acknowledging Red Deer’s similar lack of a full-sized pool. “We’ll definitely be looking at that.”

Seabrooke, who moved to Red Deer last week with his wife, a registered nurse, said he’ll be getting out into the community to meet people.

“I think my style is people-oriented, he said.

“I believe that how a city grows, how a city functions well is when teams get together and make decisions collectively. There isn’t any one person in a hierarchy of a city that will be able to make a city function well. My city is collaborative. At the end of the day, if you’re not listening to what your residents want, you’re not going to to be successful.”

Seabrooke also revealed Monday that his contract is for five years.