North Battleford's director of public works has received recognition for his leadership of the department.
Stewart Schafer is the recipient of the Saskatchewan Public Works Association Professional Manager of the Year Award.
George Jakeman, president of the SPWA, presented Schafer the award in Saskatoon Feb. 28, during the last day of the organization's two-day spring conference.
The award from SPWA recognizes "outstanding achievement in the area of administration within the public works department and to inspire excellence and dedication in the public sector by recognizing the outstanding career service achievements of administrative professionals."
Schafer has led the Public Works Department for the past few years during what has been a period of expansion. Most notable has been the multi-million dollar expansion of Water Treatment Plant No.1, a project completed during his tenure.
The department is also responsible for the rest of the city's infrastructure and utilities. In addition to water, it includes sewer treatment, waste management and the city's roads.
In speaking to the News-Optimist, Schafer said he was very surprised to be selected by his peers as the recipient this year.
"When they named my name for the award, saying I'd won it I said, 'Quit fooling around. Who actually won it?'" said Schafer. "And they said, 'No, no, you actually won it.'"
He believes a commitment to furthering the education and continued professional development of staff might have been a factor in the award selection. That includes showing a willingness to find money in the budget to send staff on courses to improve their performance with the department.
"I've sat down with my crews and said, 'Look, we can do better,'" said Schafer. "'If there's anything you want to go out and take a course on, I'll back you 100 percent.'"
He also pointed to a willingness to be open to new ideas. One example was a suggestion made to use a Durapatcher to fix potholes.
"They said 'we think this might work.' We said 'okay, let's give it a shot.' We rented it for a couple of months and we found out, 'man, this is a good idea,'" said Schafer.
Schafer believes the honour reflects well upon the City of North Battleford and on the department.
"It does indicate we're progressive, becoming more progressive. We're not afraid to look at new ideas, we're not afraid to train our staff to learn new things. "
