Richmond Hill appoints 2 commissioners following senior staff exodus

Both have played important roles in the city’s response to COVID-19: city manager

Yorkregion.com
July 8, 2020
Sheila Wang

Richmond Hill has filled two executive leadership positions that were vacant for four months after a spate of turnover within their senior staff.

Mary-Anne Dempster, newly appointed city manager, announced June 25 the appointments of commissioner of corporate and financial services and commissioner of community services.

Sherry Adams, who worked as the director of human resources in the city, has now assumed the new role as the city’s commissioner of financial services.

Serving the city since December 2018, Adams has more than 25 years of national and global public and private sector experience and has revamped the human resources service delivery model, according to the announcement.

She stepped into the interim commissioner position in February 2020 when her predecessor, Dempster, was appointed as interim city manager following the mysterious departure of former city manager Neil Garbe.

Garbe was among a number of higher-ranking employees that left the city for a variety of reasons over the past year.

Two weeks after the top staffer's departure, the city confirmed former commissioner of community services Ilmar Simanovskis no longer worked with the city with no further details provided.

Darlene Joslin has now been appointed to the commissioner's seat after working as interim commissioner for four months.

Joslin has worked with the city for 25 years and most recently worked as the city’s director of recreation and culture.

She has been instrumental in forging partnerships and fostering innovation within the parks, recreation and cultural service areas, according to the announcement.

Both new commissioners have played an important part in the city’s responses to COVID-19, the city manager said.