2023-09-06

Lunenburg County Lifestyle Centre general manager leaving post

BRIDGEWATER - Kent Walsh, the general manager who's led operations at the Lunenburg County Lifestyle Centre (LCLC) for nearly four years, is leaving the post.

David Mitchell, the LCLC's board chairperson, said Walsh, who departed a managerial job with an outdoor sports equipment company to take the Bridgewater position, is resigning to spend more time at home with family.

"He is staying on board until around Oct. 1," Mitchell, who's also the town's mayor, said in a phone interview.

Walsh will help with the upcoming transition to the new general manager. "That speaks to his character; we have a great working relationship," Mitchell added. "He clearly wants the best for the LCLC, so, he's trying to make it as seamless as possible."

New Brunswick-born Walsh worked for Mountain Equipment Co-op for about 14 years, starting in Calgary and then moving to the Halifax store. He joined the LCLC in January 2020, just months before the COVID-19 pandemic began and caused disruptions with recreational and sports programs and facilities for the next several months.

Walsh navigated through the complications very well, Mitchell said, and adjusted to the various gathering limits and other public health protocols during that period.

Whomever steps into the job is replacing someone who is well-liked and did their job admirably, Mitchell indicated.

"It's been my great pleasure to work with the incredible staff at the LCLC, as well as the board of directors," Walsh is quoted as saying in an online post on a LCLC social media platform. "We've accomplished some wonderful things over these past number of years that I'm really proud of, and I'm sure that momentum will carry on. This place and these people will always hold a special place for me."

Walsh didn't respond to LighthouseNOW's request for comment for this story.

"Personally I just love the South Shore. It's always been the destination. We moved from Calgary to Halifax, because that was the kind of transition we were able to make at the time. But the goal has always been to be down at the South Shore," Walsh told LighthouseNOW back in 2020.

In the job advertisement, posted online, the successful candidate "will be responsible for developing and implementing long-range strategic plans, annual business and operational plans and associated budgets. Managing a staff of 40, you will keep your finger on the pulse of day-to-day and operational matters."

The job's pay scale promises an annual salary somewhere between $81,500 and $95,900.

The LCLC, which opened in 2013 off North Park Street on the town's west side, cost about $32 million to build.

The sport, recreation, and community facility houses an NHL-size arena with a capacity to seat about 1,200 spectators, an aquatic centre suited to both leisure and competitive users, a therapeutic pool, public library and other multi-purpose spaces.