Region of Queens hires deputy CAO

The Region of Queens administration building. (Rick Conrad)

The Region of Queens has hired a deputy chief administrative officer.

Patrick Hirtle will start the job on Oct. 20. He’s currently the manager of community attraction and communications with the Town of Bridgewater.

“I’m thrilled that Patrick will be joining our team as deputy CAO. Patrick brings a unique perspective to this role – he has more than 10 years’ experience in municipal government, and has been a councillor in Town of Bridgewater several years ago,” Willa Thorpe, the region’s CAO, said in a news release.

“When we interviewed Patrick, we were very impressed with his extensive experience in municipal and private sector communications, strong skills and training in emergency management, and strength and proficiency leading a cohesive staff team.”

The deputy CAO new position was created this past year. Hirtle will assist Thorpe with projects and administration and he’ll oversee staff in administration, community economic development, communications, information technology, protective services, and policy and bylaw development.

According to his LinkedIn profile, Hirtle has worked for Bridgewater for almost 11 years. He is also the former communications co-ordinator at Covey Island Boatworks. He served one term as a Bridgewater town councillor. Before that, he worked as a journalist for Lighthouse Publishing, which used to print the Bridgewater Bulletin and Lunenburg Progress Enterprise.

He was born in Bridgewater and raised in Mahone Bay, according to the region’s news release.

“I’m both honoured and excited to have been selected as the Region of Queens’ new deputy CAO,” Hirtle said in the release.

“There are a lot of great things happening here in Queens, and I can’t wait to get to work with the team.”

The annual salary range for the deputy CAO position is $113,339 to $149,885.

Email: rickconradqccr@gmail.com