BC Gov News

The Minister of Jobs, Tourism and Innovation, Pat Bell, appointed five new members and reappointed six existing members to the BC Pavilion Corporation (PavCo) Board.

With the expansion of the Vancouver Convention Centre and the revitalization of BC Place complete, the PavCo board will now shift their focus from construction-centred projects to strategic marketing and business development initiatives for both properties.

The new PavCo board members are as follows:

• Suzanne Anton
• Michael Ballingall
• Alan Lowe
• Stuart McLaughlin
• Don Zurowski

The reappointed board members are:

• Theresa Breining
• Bob Bryant
• John Horning
• Miriam Kresivo
• Terrence Lyons
• David Podmore (Chair)

The events held at the PavCo facilities support British Columbia's business and leisure tourism industry, as well as its trade-development infrastructure. Clients and guests fill hotel rooms, patronize local businesses, and participate in pre- and post- event activities throughout B.C.

The board provides guidance to PavCo to meet government priorities and generate economic and community benefit, through the prudent management of the Vancouver Convention Centre and BC Place, for the people of British Columbia. Member appointments are effective immediately.

A backgrounder follows.

Contact:

Media Relations
Government Communications and Public Engagement
Ministry of Jobs, Tourism and Innovation
250 356-8177

BACKGROUNDER

Government appoints new PavCo board members

New members:

Suzanne Anton was a City of Vancouver councillor and was elected to the Vancouver Parks Board as a Commissioner. Previously, Anton was a Mathematics teacher at the American International School of Lisbon in Portugal and through Canadian University Service Overseas in Nigeria. She was also a Crown counsel lawyer. Anton is a member of the Institute of Corporate Directors and is enrolled in the Directors Education program. Her board experience includes Translink, Metro Vancouver and the Federation of Canadian Municipalities. Active in the community, she serves as a director on the board of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, the Vancouver Board of Trade Economic Development Committee and the University of British Columbia's Presidential Strategic Advisory Council. Anton received her Bachelor of Science in Mathematics from the University of Victoria and a Bachelor of Laws from the University of British Columbia.

Michael J. Ballingall is currently the senior vice president of Big White Ski Resort and Silver Star Mountain Resorts. He is well regarded as an innovative thinker and leader within the ski and snowboard industry. Under Ballingall's leadership, Big White and Silver Star have grown to become two of Canada's top ski resort destinations. Active in the community, he is president of the Big White Chamber of Commerce, vice chair of the Canadian Ski Council, director of Tourism Kelowna, a member and former chair of the Thompson Okanagan Tourism Association and a member of the Canadian Tourism Commission Emerging Markets Committee.

Alan Lowe has been practicing architecture in British Columbia since 1988 and has owned and operated Alan Lowe Architect Inc. since 1990. A former three-term mayor of Victoria, he was the youngest person to hold this position and was Victoria's longest-serving mayor. Lowe is currently the chair of the Greater Victoria Spirit Committee, secretary of the Greater Victoria Hospitals Foundation and a governor of the Victoria Conservatory of Music. Previously, he was the chair of the Victoria Conference Centre Advisory Committee, chair of the Capital Regional District, a commissioner on the Victoria Regional Transit Commission and a member of the Victoria Chinatown Lions Club, to name a few. Lowe is a recipient of the Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal and in 2006 was named one of the Top 100 Most Influential Chinese-Canadians. He holds his Bachelor of Environmental Studies from the University of Manitoba and his Master of Architecture from the University of Oregon.

Stuart McLaughlin is the president of Grouse Mountain Resorts Ltd. He has over 20 years experience in tourism and hospitality across the province. McLaughlin is a past chair of Tourism Vancouver, a former director of Tourism BC and chaired the BC Chamber of Commerce tourism advisory committee. He has also served on the board of the Canada West Ski Areas Association and is a past chair of Outward Bound Western Canada. He was a founder of Kicking Horse Mountain Resort and currently serves as a director of Pacific Insight Electronics Corporation in Nelson, B.C., Warranty Life in Burnaby, B.C., and on the board of Presentation House Gallery in North Vancouver.

Don Zurowski retired as the general manager and CEO of Community Futures Development of Fraser Fort George. In addition, he is a former elected Municipal Councillor for the City of Prince George. In his elected capacity, Zurowski served as chair of the Finance and Audit Committee and the Grievance Committee for the City of Prince George. Within the community, he is a former chair and director of the Northwest Corridor Development Corporation and a former member of the BC Ministry of Transportation's Regional Transportation Advisory Committee. Currently, Zurowski is the chair of the International Bioenergy Conference and Exhibition Society and the Passenger Transportation Board.

Reappointments:

Theresa Breining, CMP, CMM is a principal with Breining Group LLC, whose focus is facilitating, training and consulting in the meeting industry. Breining has been in the meeting planning industry since 1976, and has been responsible for producing meetings around the globe. Considered by many to be a thought leader, Breining is an activist working tirelessly on the continuous advancement of the level of professionalism in the meeting industry, and has been serving as adjunct faculty for meeting planning programs for universities throughout Southern California for 25 years. She is a sought after speaker, presenting educational workshops for a variety of business entities, and she co-authored a book with Jack Phillips, entitled Return on Investment in Meetings and Events. Breining has been acknowledged professionally many times over the years, including her inclusion several times on the lists of "Most Influential People in the Meeting Industry" by Meeting News and Smart Meetings magazines. In recognition of her lifetime of leadership, she was inducted into the Convention Industry Council's Hall of Leaders in 2010.

Robert (Bob) J. Bryant retired in 2004, following a successful career in advertising and marketing spanning over 30 years. At the time of his retirement, Bob was chairman of TBWA Canada, with responsibility for the company's Canadian network of offices. TBWA is a leading multinational advertising agency, headquartered in New York. Throughout his career, Bryant has brought strategic marketing and creative skills to bear on a wide variety of packaged goods and service-oriented accounts. He has also been an active industry and community leader. Bryant is a past-president of the B.C. Chapter of the American Marketing Association and has also served several terms as an international director of the AMA, including a term as vice-president, professional chapters, responsible for all 90 chapters in North America. He is a recipient of the Wayne Lemburg Award for distinguished service to the AMA.

Bryant is also a past president and former director of the Advertising Agency Association of B.C. and a former board member of ICA, the national advertising industry association. He served on the provincial executive of Scouts Canada for three years, latterly as chairman of the communications committee, and he was an honorary member of the provincial council for five years. Bryant also served several years as a member of the Vancouver Playhouse Board of Governors. In 2000, he was the B.C. recipient of the Family Service of Canada's Leadership Award. He has been actively involved with B.C.'s Children's Hospital for 15 years, serving on the board of the BCCH Foundation for 9 years, including two years as chairman. Bob is currently on the BCCH Foundation's board of governors, and is also currently chairman of the board of BCIT Foundation.

John Horning is the senior vice-president, CFO and corporate secretary for International Forest Products Limited (Interfor), responsible for corporate restructuring, mergers and acquisitions, information technologies, contract negotiation, finance and administration. He is also chairman of Seaboard Shipping Ltd., a director of several subsidiary companies of Interfor and a past director of Pacific Coach Lines Ltd. Horning is the chair and trustee of the David Spencer Endowment Encouragement Foundation. He holds a Bachelor of Commerce and Business Administration (Hon.) from UBC and is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants and the Arbitration Institute of B.C.

Miriam Kresivo is general counsel and corporate secretary for Chevron Canada Limited, part of the Chevron Corporation Group of Companies. In this capacity, she oversees all legal issues and is focused on property, labour, employment and human rights, corporate compliance and corporate commercial transactions of the company. Kresivo previously worked for the international consulting firm of William M. Mercer Limited where she was involved in consulting in the area of employment and human rights issues. Kresivo is a member of the Canadian Bar Association and a past member of the Downtown Advisory Board of the YMCA and Anna Wyman Dance Company. Kresivo holds a Bachelor of Arts from McGill University and a law degree from the University of British Columbia.

Terrence (Terry) Lyons has over 35 years experience in the development and management of natural resource, manufacturing, real estate and merchant banking companies with an extensive background in corporate restructuring activities. Lyons is currently non-executive chairman of Northgate Minerals Corporation (a mining company formerly affiliated with Brookfield) and a director and officer of several public corporations including Canaccord Capital Inc. (also chairman of the audit committee and lead director), Diamonds North Resources Ltd., Skye Resources Inc., Polaris Minerals Corporation, Sprott Resource Corporation, Farallon Resources Ltd., TTM Resources Inc., and several private corporations. Lyons has been active in Junior Achievement, the United Way, Special Olympics and other charitable and sports organizations. He is past chairman of the Mining Association of BC, a governor of the Olympic Foundation of Canada, former chairman of Sport BC, a past president of Shaughnessy Golf and Country Club and is a member of the advisory board of the Richard Ivey School of Business at Western University. In 2007, Lyons was awarded the Inco Medal by the Canadian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy for meritorious contributions to the industry.

David Podmore has more than 33 years experience in the real estate development and construction industry and is chairman and CEO of Concert Properties Ltd. He is vice-chair of the British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT) Foundation; and he is a director of Terasen Inc. and Borealis BC Labs Inc. (formerly MDS Metro Laboratory Services). Podmore is the immediate past president of the Urban Development Institute of BC (Pacific Region), a past member of the BC Progress Board, immediate past chair of the BC Children's Hospital Foundation and was a director of the Canadian Tourism Commission for eight years. Podmore holds a Bachelor's Degree specializing in community and regional planning from the University of British Columbia and a Master's Degree (Earth Sciences) specializing in urban planning from the University of Alberta. He is a Registered Professional Planner (MCIP), a professional member of the Real Estate Institute of British Columbia (RIBC), and a professional member of the Real Estate Institute of Canada (FRI). He is the first recipient of the Award of Excellence established by The Real Estate Institute of BC, and in 2003 he received the Community Service Award from Volunteer Vancouver. In 2005, Podmore was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Technology from the British Columbia Institute of Technology.

Contact:

Media Relations
Government Communications and Public Engagement
Ministry of Jobs, Tourism and Innovation
250 356-8177