Jeremy Valeriote, this past provincial election’s BC Green Party MLA candidate for the Sea to Sky, has secured himself a job at the municipality.
Valeriote, who is chair of the BC Green Party, told The Chief he’s been working for the District since June 28 as the executive co-ordinator to the mayor and chief administrative officer.
“I think I was able to bring some skills...that are able to help the mayor and CAO do their jobs as efficiently and effectively as possible,” he said.
He said his role involves helping the District’s officials — such as council — with scheduling, planning, strategy and other logistics.
Valeriote described the role as all-around support on various projects.
This can include drafting weekly updates to officials, COVID updates and other internal organizational matters.
While Valeriote is an engineer by trade, he said his role at the District doesn’t include any engineering duties.
There has been some online chatter wondering about whether Valeriote’s hiring may be a signal that the mayor has future political ambitions with the BC Greens.
To this, Valeriote said it was a competitive hiring process, not a political appointment.
“It's a standard District role, like many others, that are not on the political side,” he said.
“Anything political is simply speculation.”
The District of Squamish issued a written statement to The Chief regarding the new hire.
In the statement, CAO Linda Glenday said that Valeriote’s position is not new, but rather replaces the previous executive assistant to Mayor and CAO role.
That role was revised to take on the projects and administrative duties required for the office as the organization and community issues continue to grow in both complexity and scope, Glenday wrote.
She added that there were many candidates interviewed, but Valeriote was chosen for his unique skillset.
“As per the B.C. Human Rights Code, the District of Squamish does not discriminate against any of the prohibited grounds of discrimination, including an employee's political beliefs,” wrote Glenday.
“For clarity, council does not have the authorization to hire staff; hiring decisions are made by managerial staff overseeing the position. In this case, the executive co-ordinator was hired by and reports to the chief administrative officer, though does provide administrative support to the mayor.”
Glenday noted that Valeriote is a professional engineer with a 20-year background in environmental management and local government administration.
“His previous local government experience at both the staff and council level at the Sunshine Coast Regional District and in Gibsons, combined with his education and passion for community service, will bring value to the organization and our community,” she continued.
Local government is also a family theme. Valeriote’s spouse, Virginia Cullen, is CAO of the Resort Municipality Of Whistler.
***Correction: Aug. 6, 8:29 p.m. on the fourth paragraph, Valeriote said 'efficiently,' not 'sufficiently.'
