Daniel Drexler was hired as the new chief administrative officer (CAO) for the District of Barriere (DOB) in June, coming into the position with a strong resume as the former corporate officer and manager of information technology for the city of Grand Forks.
During an interview on Friday, Nov. 29 with the Barriere Star/Journal, it was obvious that Drexler is enjoying the North Thompson Valley.
“My wife and I bought a home right away and we’ve gone up to Wells Gray Park, Sun Peaks, and it’s fantastic to be only 35 minutes away from a city like Kamloops. We have a great team here working for the district.”
The 46-year-old husband and father of two sons, 20 and 17, finds some similarities coming from Grand Forks to the North Thompson.
“Something I appreciated about living in Grand Forks was it being much like this, a mountainous valley with distinct four seasons and even though Barriere may be a little smaller, we find it to be a bit more relaxed here and we are thoroughly enjoying living here,” he said.
When asked what he feels can be improved upon within the DOB, Drexler says he’s “always looking for efficiencies” and laughs when he adds, “I’m German, so my German heritage is coming through a lot at times. Time management is key in achieving goals, that’s just my second nature so I bring this into almost anything I do, be it personal or at work.
“Having been here for the past five months I’ve started to do an assessment of where there can be enhancements in how the organization operates. At the end of the day, it’s really council and what council wants to do. We’ve just had a strategic planning session. It was a fun two days. Council came up with a higher-level priority list and goals that they want to accomplish in the next two years while they are still in office. We hope to bring that out of the in-camera side of things to residents in the January regular meeting of council.”
The CAO refers to the “focus on asset management right now alongside the Southern Interior Local Government Association’s (SILGA) planning strategies for local governments within this region” and he feels his experience in asset management working for Grand Forks can benefit his role in Barriere moving forward “in making smart decisions for this area and the DOB council.”
When asked how he would explain asset management to residents in the valley he replied, “That’s a great question and at the end of the day, it’s looking at every piece of infrastructure, every asset that we own like a building, underground pipe, a well, even your natural assets like if there is a wetland, such as the Leonie Lake Dam, things like that that have an impact or benefit to the community. Then putting a dollar amount to it and then planning for that eventual replacement that has to happen, when is it better to do maintenance? When is it better to just let it fail and replace the whole thing when that happens?”
Drexler observes that “usually incremental maintenance is a better choice than letting it fail” and says asset management is assessing what you have, then planning how best to implement. “Assess, plan, and implement. The Barriere Town Road for example. A road like that generally has a life expectancy with heavy truck traffic going over it of about 25 to 30 years. It was paved at one point from the highway to the three-way stop. At some point we must replace that and can’t just assume it’s going to last forever. It’s figuring out how soon the asset will need major repair which would mean a full replacement and how much we can do with incremental pothole patching and crack sealing, to extend that to say, 50 years before you must replace it.”
The CAO explains that roads with heavy truck traffic most often can’t be “extended” for that long due to certain failures that start to occur with that type of use.
He mentions the water infrastructure and some of the pipes underground in Barriere being 60-plus years old with engineers having reported to the district for some time now the need to replace them. When considering a job like that he points out you then review how much risk there is to extend the asset of this kind, how much maintenance can be done repairing the smaller issues until this asset must be fully replaced and weighing the cost to taxpayers, what the area has in the way of reserve funds for such projects and what will be the impact to residents. “Asset management, planning is imperative and ongoing,” said Drexler.
Drexler says his background leans heavily on his experience in IT having operated his own business for 12 years, Drexler Computer systems Ltd. With his company providing technical service for client servers, networks, and computers as well as IT support and consulting for industrial, municipal, small and medium businesses and educational institutions and for individuals.
The CAO holds advanced certification in Local Government Administration from Capilano University and a certificate in Local Government Service Delivery from the BC Board of Examiners. He is also a certified Microsoft Technical Specialist and certified Solutions Associate.
“I was fortunate to have a mentor in Grand Forks that recognized that I could do a heck of a lot more than just the IT stuff and provided me with the opportunity to join the city in the operations and public works side of things as deputy manager of public works. In that role I oversaw, parks, roads, the campground, airport and events,” said Drexler.
Drexler said council is expecting an announcement to be made regarding the appointment of the chief election officer during the regular DOB council meeting Dec. 16.
“Should the council choose to appoint a CEO at that meeting it is likely that a March 1, 2025, by-election will be scheduled at that time as was discussed in our Nov. 18 regular council meeting. As of now, nothing is official until a CEO is appointed.”
Towards the end of the interview, Drexler commented having the former mayor of Barriere, now MLA for Kamloops-North Thompson, Ward Stamer in the legislature can only “benefit the valley strategically with regards to forestry, highway safety, fire mitigation and infrastructure” and praised the current council’s hard work together to keep things “running smoothly” under the direction of deputy mayor, Rob Kerslake since Stamer resigned as mayor.
“At the end of the day I am more of a humble person who sits behind council in support of what they want to accomplish and perhaps with my experience in a variety of different fields I can assist Barriere in some ways the region may not have had before. That’s my hope," he said.
