“I don’t think it’s unique. Everywhere you
go, you work according to the budgets that
get approved,” he said. “So, various places
have various allocations for infrastructure
upgrades and dollar figures, and really that’s
not unique. You work to what council
approves and provides. There’s always more
projects or more work that we can get done,
but you’re limitedby the amount ofmoney.”
And while some frame the scenario as an
unwinnable fight, Bowa leans pragmatic.
“Everywhere you go, everybody has either
five-year plans or 10-year plans, but then
you’re limited to the upcoming budget year
in what you can get done. It’s not
frustrating. It’s the realitywe live in.”
In Orillia, his reality involves overseeing a
public works operation whose full-time
staff numbers 65 and whose tasks are
broken down into f ive subsets –
engineering, transportation, roads and
storm, collection/distribution and parks.
It’s similar, but not the same, as the jobs he’s
had i n o the r p l a c e s , wi th s ome
departmental tasks staying the same, while
others are addedor subtracted.
The city was home to 30,586 residents as of
the 2011 census and has experienced slow
but steady growth since the 2001 count,
when the population was 29,121. Some of
the growth is attributable, Bowa said, to
local campuses of both Georgian College
and Lakehead University, the latter of
which arrived in 2006 and was the catalyst
for increased residential and commercial
activity in its vicinity.
The general headquarters function of the
Ontario Provincial Policewas established in
the city in 1995, and another large swath of
both employment and tourism comes to
Orillia thanks to Casino Rama resort,
located in Rama First Nation, about 15
minutes fromdowntownOrillia.
A significant chunk of Bowa’s daily activity
revolves around adherence to the city’s
transportation master plan, which was
compiled in 2005 and most recently
updated in 2011. In it, significant road
projects are listed in priority order and it
becomes Bowa’s job to work his way down
the list as both circumstances – and finances
– allow.
City of Orillia | BusinessWorld-
Magazine | 3
