Last year, there was a vacancy in the administration of the Town of Drumheller after former Manager of Recreation, Arts and Culture, Rick Ladoucer, was no longer with the Town.
With the Town doing some restructuring, that vacancy has now been filled per se with the hiring of a new Director of Recreation & Community Services, Mike Ziehr. He is looking forward to his new opportunity. “I am so excited about this role. It is a new role with the municipality. I wouldn’t say that there isn’t anything primary in this role but recreation is definitely one of the most important parts of the role. Looking at all the community facilities here and making sure that they are utilized efficiently.” Ziehr is looking at the programs offered at all of our facilities and making sure they are highly utilized.
Ziehr’s other side of the role focuses on the Community Services. “The other side of the role is Community Services. That envelops planning development, economic development, those sort of things. Looking at both business retention and expansion, making sure our current businesses and residents really have the tools they need to succeed in our community. Also, looking at new development, looking at new industry coming in, making sure we diversify our tax base as much as we can.” He is also the lead of the Family and Community Support Services (FCSS) as part of his role.
Many have inquired over the years about growth in our recreation and Ziehr understands there are some possible needs in the Drumheller Valley. “I’ve been in the role for a couple of weeks and I think the term is ‘drinking from a firehose’. I’m taking in as much as I can right now. I am meeting a lot of fantastic people in the area and have sat on a few committees already, including the sports committee, to identify where the needs are in the community. The Town has a very strong legislative plan in the Recreation Master Plan. That is the governing document and the guiding principals that the community has already told us what they want. One thing I have seen there already is a real desire for an additional sheet of ice.” Ziehr understands that with support of Town Council, his role is to help identify opportunities there are to meet the needs of the community.
Ziehr is from around the area and has always wanted to be here. “I was born and raised just outside of Drumheller. I think I have always had a real deep desire to work in the area. When this opportunity came up, and be able to dive into the community here, I think it was a natural choice for me.”
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