Vaughan's new city manager enjoys gardening, outdoor sports
Yorkregion.com
Aug. 19, 2016
By Adam Martin-Robbins
Daniel Kostopoulos landed in the city manager’s chair at the City of Vaughan in late June. He replaced Steve Kanellakos who tendered his resignation in February, less than a year after arriving, to become the top staffer at the City of Ottawa, his previous employer.
Prior to taking the helm at city hall, Kostopoulos spent about 15 years working at the Region of York, the last three as commissioner of transportation. He also served as York’s director of capital planning and delivery, environmental services and manager of transportation engineering and construction, roads. Prior to that, Kostopoulos was a senior engineer with the TTC.
The Citizen recently put five wide-ranging questions to Kostopoulos, below are his responses:
Q - What is your top priority as city manager?
A - As city manager, my focus is on providing leadership and support to staff as we work to achieve the priorities for this term of council that are set out in our service excellence strategy.
An important part of this is working collaboratively with others to achieve mutually beneficial solutions. I will aim to develop and strengthen partnerships with industry, senior levels of government and neighbouring municipalities to continue the city-building initiatives that are underway.
Q - The city's crippling traffic congestion consistently ranks among the top concerns of Vaughan residents. What, if anything, can be done by the city to alleviate it?
A - Addressing transportation challenges is a multi-jurisdictional responsibility across the GTA and improving mobility in Vaughan is a top priority of council.
Unprecedented investments are being made to improve Vaughan’s roads and transit networks by all levels of government. This includes extension of TTC subways, building YRT/Viva Bus Rapidways, provincial highway expansions, developing Regional Express Rail to provide frequent two-way/all-day GO Rail service and expansion of several regional roads and city streets. In addition to major infrastructure expansions to accommodate growth, infrastructure renewal programs are also being implemented along with operational initiatives to optimize traffic signals, improve safety and promote walking and cycling.
Combined, these initiatives will improve service levels and provide improved transportation options for Vaughan residents. The City is committed to working collaboratively with York Region, Metrolinx, the Ministry of Transportation and our communities to realize council’s priority of improving mobility across the City.
Q - Vaughan's internal audit department has reported that there's a culture of fear at city hall and that city staff are reluctant to speak out, even anonymously, about unethical behavior or potentially illegal activity for fear of reprisal. How do you intend to address this?
A - The mayor and council, along with staff, are committed to making Vaughan a world-class city. As city manager, fostering a positive culture in this organization is something I take very seriously. Moving forward, I intend to work with staff and council to build on recent improvements in this organization. Improving clarity around roles and responsibilities of staff and council will contribute to a more supportive and collaborative environment that is focused on our priority of delivering service excellence.
Q -If we asked your close friends or colleagues to describe you, what do you think they would say?
A - Words my close friends and colleagues recently used to describe me include: professional, hard working, passionate, results oriented, trustworthy and collaborative.
Q - Tell us something about yourself that not many people know, but that we might find interesting or surprising?
A - We are blessed in Vaughan and York Region to have some of the most beautiful parks, trails and natural environment. One thing people may not know about me is that I spend a considerable amount of my free time outdoors - I enjoy gardening as well as outdoor sports and activities.
