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Fate of Nanaimo's top city official unclear after new job announced

Nanaimo is watching to see if Tracy Samra, the city’s chief administrative officer, will remain on the job. Last week, the Shíshálh First Nation in Sechelt announced on its website that Samra will be its new chief administrative officer.
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Last week, the Shíshálh First Nation in Sechelt announced on its website that Tracy Samra will be its new chief administrative officer.

Nanaimo is watching to see if Tracy Samra, the city’s chief administrative officer, will remain on the job.

Last week, the Shíshálh First Nation in Sechelt announced on its website that Samra will be its new chief administrative officer.

Nanaimo Mayor Bill McKay has said that no resignation has been submitted in Nanaimo. He said Friday that he had no comment about Samra’s job.

Samra did not comment when reached Monday.

The First Nation did not respond to Times Colonist requests for comments.

An in-camera council meeting was moved ahead to 4:30 p.m. Monday in the Vancouver Island Conference Centre in Nanaimo. It had previously been scheduled for 7 p.m.

Personnel matters are normally dealt with at in-camera meetings, which means they are out of the public eye.

Samra has been a high-profile chief administrative officer who has, at times, clashed with some members of Nanaimo council.

A consultant was hired by council last year to examine the work environment at city hall after Samra complained about how she was treated.

Nanaimo council issued a letter of regret to Samra in September. It said it would follow recommendations toward fostering a respectful workplace, as outlined in the consultant’s report, which remains confidential.

McKay and Coun. Diane Brennan were censured after an in-camera meeting last month and told to write apology letters to Samra and to take special workplace training.

Brennan said in a Monday email that she did not issue an apology.

“I did, however, talk with the HR (human resources) director, John Van Horne, to begin the process to choose a course as suggested by the council. We are still at the beginning stages of that. I am always open to professional development opportunities.”

A subsequent in-camera censure hearing saw Brennan censured again, that time for publicly criticizing the hiring process for Samra. Brennan said later that she did not break any rules and would not apologize.

Another in-camera censure meeting, unrelated to Samra, had been planned for McKay this month but he said it had been cancelled. It is unclear whether it will be rescheduled.

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