Evan Parliament joins CAMA board of directors

Evan Parliament, an older Caucasian male in a suit standing in front of city hall with a poppy pinned to his suit jacket. He is smiling at the camera with his hands in his pockets looking relaxed. — Evan Parliament, Revelstoke’s chief administrative officer says he’s eager to show Revelstoke to municipal administrators from across Canada. **Photo provided by City of Revelstoke**

Evan Parliament, Revelstoke’s chief administrative officer, has been elected to the Canadian Association of Municipal Administrators (CAMA) board of directors. This new position will allow Parliament to mentor Canada’s future municipal administrators and showcase Revelstoke’s municipal strategies.

Parliament took on the four-year long volunteer role with a focus to access the experiences from other municipal administrators, while providing tools for those entering the field.

“They’re going up against political uncertainty, abuse from some elected officials, abuse from some residents,” he said of municipality administrators. “How do you manage that political acumen?”

A chance to better connect with CAMA and the resources in other municipalities will be a win for Revelstoke as well.

“Once you network with all your colleagues across Canada, you never know what nugget you find, you can borrow best practices from other communities,” Parliament said. “You can get leads on federal grants.”

A project on Parliament’s mind that he hopes CAMA can help navigate is the enhancement of the Revelstoke airport to support future flight schools. Networking with communities similar to Revelstoke’s size that have previously expanded their airports could help Revelstoke from running into familiar barriers.

Parliament also hopes to bring more attention to what Revelstoke has accomplished over the years.

“One of the first things I’ve asked is that a board meeting be held in Revelstoke in the next two years.”

Parliament wants to take that opportunity to show Revelstoke to municipal representatives from across Canada and share what strategies the city is using in a time of growth, housing hurdles and resource concerns.

“Bio-Heat is more popular now than it’s ever been before. Revelstoke was tackling this in the 2000s,” Parliament shared as one example of what Revelstoke could offer other municipalities. “We need to showcase that.”

Other municipalities are trying to navigate outdoor spaces and accessible recreation, and Parliament stressed that Revelstoke’s trail network and Illecillewaet Greenbelt Trail are strategies done right in giving residents and guests that opportunity.

“This next generation of staffers, they’re going to be a lot smarter than me. This whole world is a village now where we can access other ideas.”