Victoria City Council approved the salary for a new position at city hall –- head of strategies and operations for the mayor’s office. Mayor Lisa Helps says it will essentially be a chief of staff position.

Helps had proposed an annual salary of approximately $120,000 for the role, but that was shot down by council, which ultimately agreed to pay the new staffer $90,000, plus benefits, for a total of $108,000.

Helps said the new position is one that all mayors of major cities already have.

"What I need is strategic support to advance the priorities of the city that don’t fall to the city manager, that don’t fall to the director of city planning, or the director of engineering or anyone else," said Helps.

However, not all of city council supports the decision. 

"I don’t like the position at all," said Coun. Geoff Young. He doesn’t think the mayor should have her own chief of staff, and worries the person will serve primarily to advance Helps’ agenda, rather than that of  city council as a whole. 

“How would you like it if I was the mayor and I had a high level person whose role was to advance my agenda, rather than council’s agenda?” he asked. 

What’s more, Young is concerned there may be tension between the new hire and the city manager, particularly if their roles overlap.

"I can see all kinds of friction arising, depending on personalities of course," he said.

However, Helps said the city manager’s role is very different from that of the new position.

She said the city manager is in charge of overseeing the 799 full-time employees at city hall, and ensuring that its operations and culture are running smoothly, not on focusing on advancing the council’s agenda. Helps said her agenda and the council’s agenda are one and the same. 

"I don’t have an agenda that is different from council’s. That is a complete mistake if he thinks that. My job is to advance council’s direction," she said.

Helps added she’s confident there will not be tension caused by the new hire. "One of my key strengths as a leader is a relationship builder. That’s how we’ve gotten so much down in the last four years. Not only at City Hall, but beyond, so the person that we hire will work well, not only with the city manager but with everybody else in the city just like I have."

Helps noted, however, that it might be hard to find the right person to fill the role for a salary that’s not higher than $90,000 plus benefits, and if the right candidate doesn’t come along, she won’t hire anyone for the role.