Development/Construction
Sara Fumagalli-Hui, previously vice-president and project director in COWI North America Ltd.’s North Vancouver office, has been promoted to vice-president of operations, West Coast, for COWI Marine. Jordan Toye has joined the company as legal counsel. Toye, previously counsel for Chevron Canada Ltd., will be responsible for all legal regulatory requirements across the company.
Hospitality/Tourism/Convention
Tim Fernback has been appointed chief financial officer at Cuba Ventures Corp. In addition, each of the company’s directors – Steve Marshall (CEO), James Pettit (president), Donald Huston, Fernback and Amanda Chow – have been re-elected to the board. Fernback has more than 20 years of experience financing both private and public micro-capitalization companies in Canada; he has held positions at Discovery Capital Corp., Wolverton Securities Ltd. and currently serves as regional director of the CFO Centre Ltd., a provider of permanent, part-time and interim CFO services to growing companies.
Legal
Michelle Isaak has joined the partnership of DLA Piper (Canada) LLP. She has been practicing wills, estates and trusts law in the firm’s Vancouver office since completing her articles in 2004. Isaak is active in the legal community, regularly contributing to publications for the Continuing Legal Education Society of BC and frequently presenting on wills, trusts and estate administration topics to industry organizations such as the Society of Trustand Estate Practitioners and Canadian Bar Association.
Media
Michael Goehring, who has been with National Public Relations’ Vancouver office since 2000, has been appointed a partner of the firm. Goehring leads the firm’s energy committee, a team of communications and public affairs experts specializing in the oil and gas, utilities, electricity, renewables and clean technology sectors.
Real Estate
The Professional Association of Managing Agents, a non-profit organization founded in 1970 to promote professional and ethical residential property management, recently awarded the following: Taryn Porrit, Stratawest Management, and Gaby Pena, Blueprint Strata Management, (Rookie of the Year/Rising Star award); Elaine Ferguson, Proline Management (Strata Property Manager of the Year); Georgette Rotaru, Associa BC (Rental Property Manager of the Year); Berit Hansen, Quay Pacific Property Management (Industry Leader of the Year); and Mayank Anand, Superior Restoration (Industry Contributor of the Year).
The first set of global property ethics principles has been released by the International Ethics Standards Coalition, a group of more than 100 professional organizations from countries including France, Germany, Dubai, Brazil, China, Russia, Japan, Nigeria, Australia, the U.K., Canada, and the U.S. The standards are intended to guide professionals working in land, property, construction, infrastructure and related professions and are available at www.ies-coalition.org/standards. William P.J. McCarthy, of Burnaby-based W.P.J. McCarthy and Co., served on the 19-member Standards Setting Committee.
Resources
Ronald A. Hall has been appointed to Panoro Minerals Ltd.’s board of directors. Hall, currently an independent director of Chinalco Mining Corp. International, a publicly listed company on the Hong Kong stock exchange, has more than 40 years’ experience in the management, operation, evaluation and design of mining projects globally. From 2004 to 2011, Hall led the growth of Wardrop Engineering’s mining business in Vancouver and internationally, including the establishment of offices in the U.K., China, Chile, Brazil, Hong Kong and Australia, prior to the acquisition of Wardrop by TetraTech Inc.
Technology
Annie Chan has been appointed chief financial officer at Urban Communications Inc., replacing interim CFO Julie van Baarsen. Chan is a chartered accountant with 10 years of experience in financial reporting, budgeting, financial analysis and mergers and acquisitions for publicly listed companies in Canada and the U.S. Chan has held senior accounting and finance roles at both private and public companies including HSBC Bank Canada, Bralorne Gold Mines Ltd. and Levon Resources Ltd.
Transportation
Stephen Martin has been appointed chief commercial officer at Vantage Airport Group, effective January 16. Martin has more than 30 years of experience in the development, financing, management and operation of airports. Serving Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA) for more than nine years, Martin was most recently LAWA’s chief development officer, and prior to that was its chief operating officer. Prior to joining LAWA, Martin’s career included executive positions at Airports Council International-North America and at Leigh Fisher Associates. Martin also served for four years as director of financial development at the U.S. Department of Transportation and held various executive positions at the Massachusetts Port Authority.
Hats Off
Turner Construction’s Vancouver business unit donated $6,000 to Vancouver-based non-profit organization, Canadian Construction Women. The funds will go towards the organization’s mandate of creating a stronger construction industry by inspiring and supporting women.
Pacific Blue Cross Health Foundation donated $150,000 to the Canadian Cancer Society’s Wig Bank program in B.C. The impact of hair loss on a person’s identity can be overwhelming when going through cancer treatment, and the funds will help to ensure people with cancer in communities across B.C. continue to have access to wigs as well as a welcoming and supportive environment.
Four Scotiabank branches (Commercial and Broadway, Cambie and King Edward, Yaletown and Robson and Bute) donated $4,000 to Vancouver Girls Hockey. The funds will allow the organization to further grow female hockey in Vancouver through purchasing additional ice time, extra development coaches and allow for teams to enter local tournaments.
Faith Wilson Group donated $8,000 to KidStart, a one-to-one volunteer mentoring program for children and youth at-risk across the Lower Mainland. The funds will be used to establish a KidStart legacy fund, enabling the gift to keep on giving. •
