Roly Russell of Grand Forks is the new President of the AKBLG, taking over from Rob Gay of Cranbrook. Cranbrook City Councillor Ron Popoff has also been elected to the executive as Director at Large.
The Association of Kootenay and Boundary Local Governments (AKBLG) is the local government association that represents the municipalities and electoral areas of the south-eastern portion of the province of British Columbia. The area includes the Regional Districts of Kootenay Boundary (RDKB), Central Kootenay (RDCK), East Kootenay (RDEK) as well as the Town of Golden and the Village of Valemount.
The Association held its annual convention this past weekend in Castlegar, April 26-28.
Russell had served as the Association’s Vice-President over the past two years. He is taking over the presidency from Rob Gay, who is Chair of the Regional District of East Kootenay and Director of the RDEK. Russell is also currently the RDKB Area D director and the chair of the RDKB.
The AKBLG identifies issues that impact on the economy, environment, and the social well being of people living in southeast B.C. The executive is made up of the president, vice-president and six directors at large.
The new AKBLG executive is made up of President Roly Russell (Grand Forks); Vice-President Clara Reinhardt (Mayor of Radium Hot Springs); and directors Garry Jackman (Area A Director Regional District of Central Kootenay), Ron Popoff (Cranbrook City Councillor), Diane Langman (Mayor of Warfield), Ange Qualizza (Mayor of Fernie), Adam Cashmere (Area C Director, RDCK), Rob Lang (Kaslo Village Councillor) and Rob Gay (Past President).
The President and Vice-President serve two-year terms.