It’s the first day on the job for the CBRM’s new chief administrative officer. Regional Council announced in July that Victoria Mines native Michael Merritt had be hired for the job. Merritt has 32 years of experience in the public service, mostly recently in Alberta, where he was an assistant deputy minister to the Department of Municipal Affairs. Merritt was selected after the Cape Breton Regional Municiaplity paid Toronto-based Organization Consulting Ltd. just under 39-thousand dollars to interview potential candidates and narrow down a short list. Four candidates were initially interviewed for the position. Marie Walsh had served as interim CAO since January of last year and said she was interested in doing the job on a fulltime basis. However, she was passed over for the position. The starting salary for the new CAO is 180-thousand dollars a year.
