New directors appointed to BC Ferries' Board

VICTORIA, BC, June 20, 2022 /CNW/ - The BC Ferry Authority appointed six new directors and reappointed several others to the BC Ferry Services Board.

The new appointments take the place of members whose terms are expiring to bring extensive business, labour, and other board leadership experience to BC Ferries. Together with the five existing members, this new board positions the ferry operator for the complex environment in the years ahead. The new members will begin serving on June 24, 2022, for a two-year term.

The six new board members are:

• Cathy McLay is the former Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice President of Finance and Corporate Services with TransLink and served as Interim CEO.
  Ms. McLay is a member of the boards of Insurance Corporation of BC, Vancouver Fraser Port Authority, Coast Mountain Bus Company, and Green Power Motor Company. She has previously served on the boards of Providence Health Care, Transportation Property & Casualty Company Inc., British Columbia Rapid Transit Company Inc., Vancouver Coastal Health, and Canfor Asia Corporation.
  
  
• Charlene Hiller is a lawyer and partner in the Capital Projects Group at Bennett Jones in Vancouver. Ms. Hiller brings significant experience in infrastructure and construction as the lead or co-lead counsel on high-profile infrastructure projects in B.C., including the George Massey Tunnel Replacement Project, New Surrey Hospital and Cancer Centre, Trans Mountain Pipeline Expansion Project, Royal Columbian Hospital Redevelopment Project, and Dawson Creek Hospital Redevelopment Project.
  
  
• Joy MacPhail most recently completed a five-year term as chair of the Insurance Corporation of BC. Ms. MacPhail has also been a director of the boards of Delta Hotels and SilverBirch Hotels. Ms. MacPhail served as chair of the Expert Panel on the Future of Housing for the governments of Canada and B.C. and was also chair of the Mobility Pricing Panel. Ms. MacPhail is a trustee of Adler University in Chicago and Vancouver, and a director on the boards of Covenant House Vancouver and Arthritis Research Canada. Ms. MacPhail is the vice chair of Nch'Kay Development Corporation, the economic development arm of the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish Nation). The Governor General of Canada appointed Ms. MacPhail to the Order of Canada in December 2021.
  
  
• Harold Calla is Executive Chair of the First Nations Financial Management Board, a fellow of the Chartered Professional Accountants Association of Canada and a member of Squamish Nation. Mr. Calla brings significant board leadership as a member of the Board of Directors of Trans Mountain Corporation, the Joint Assembly of First Nations-Indigenous Services Canada Committee on Fiscal Relations, and former member of the Board of Fortis BC, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, Partnerships BC, the Nicola Valley Institute of Technology. Mr. Calla served as the Executive Chair of the First Nations Financial Management Board. He was instrumental in the development of the First Nations Land Management Act.
  
  
• J. Dennis Blatchford is the recently retired Pensions and Benefits Advocate for the Health Sciences Association of BC. Mr. Blatchford was a director for the B.C. Federation of Labour, a founding member of the Municipal Pension Plan Board of Trustees and served as member of the BC Investment Management Corporation Board of Directors. Mr. Blatchford has also served as a trustee for the Canadian Blood Services Pension Plan, the Nurses' Bargaining Association Retiree Benefit Fund, Joint Health Sciences Benefit Trust, and the Healthcare Investment Unit Trust.
  
  
• Tamim Raad is a seasoned strategist, planner, and executive, leading work with public mobility entities across Canada (road, transit, air and marine). He is a Registered Professional Planner with the Canadian Institute of Planners and served as the Director of Strategic Planning and Policy with TransLink. Mr. Raad is the co-founder and principal of Access Planning, a strategic planning consultancy firm. Mr. Raad has overseen the creation of major regional strategies, developed megaprojects and large service programs, created new institutional and project governance models, and developed complex funding and delivery strategies for organizations, including TransLink, Greater Toronto Airports Authority (Pearson), Regional Transit Centre Metropolitan Transportation Commission, ARTM (Autorité Régionale de Transport Métropolitain), and San Francisco Transportation Authority.

New board members bring distinguished and unique perspectives from Indigenous and coastal communities, public sector and board leadership, customer service, organized labour, and transportation and mobility expertise. They will join existing members David Podmore, Eric Denhoff, Michael Pucci, Sarah Morgan-Silvester, and Shona Moore.

The board appointments are the result of a formal BCFA recruitment effort, including a seven-week public call for expressions of interest.

Quotes:

"The BC Ferry Authority would like to thank the outgoing members for their service. British Columbia's ferry services are critical to the overall coastal economy, providing an important link to communities, jobs, and businesses. The new board members bring important qualifications, background, and bench strength as BC Ferries tackles the challenge of rebuilding post-pandemic service and prepares for the changing economy driven by new technology, improved mobility, and action on climate change," Lecia Stewart, chair of the BC Ferry Authority board.

Quick Facts

• The BC Ferry Authority is an independent authority in the governance of BC Ferries. It is not a Crown corporation.
• Through the Coastal Ferry Act, the Authority is the holder of the single common and voting share of BC Ferry Services.
• As the sole voting shareholder, it is responsible to oversee BC Ferries' strategic direction in support of the public interest, appoint BC Ferries' Board of Directors, and approve the compensation plan for BC Ferries' executives, among other duties.

Learn more about BC Ferry Authority at: https://www.bcferryauthority.com

SOURCE BC Ferry Authority

Media Relations, BC Ferry Authority, [email protected]