Latest news with #Deneau
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
City of Windsor defends hiring mayor's wife for project manager role
Windsor's Chief Administrative Officer said all rules were followed in the recent hiring of Jane Deneau, the mayor's wife, for a permanent, full-time, project manager role with the city. According to Ray Mensour, Deneau was the top-scoring candidate for the job in the parks, recreation and facilities department, which has a posted salary range between $96,000 and $116,900. The job opening was listed for six days, from April 4 to 10. The CAO said Deneau was one of 278 people who applied for the position, and then one of three shortlisted candidates — who were all external submissions. "This position does not have any direct reports and is not considered a manager level employee," said Mensour. "Therefore, the recruitment does not require or involve mayoral participation or approval." CBC News reached out to Deneau for comment, but did not receive a response. Windsor mayor Drew Dilkens confirmed on AM800 that his wife had been hired, and said in a statement to CBC News that he "cannot speak to a recruitment process with which I was not involved." Strong mayor powers can raise concerns A municipal government expert believes that strong mayor powers have "muddied the waters" when it comes to hiring people who have a relationship with the mayor. "The crux of the issue here relates to strong mayor powers over administration and how they could undermine the CAO-Council model that most municipalities in Ontario and Canada have adopted," said Joe Lyons, Director of the Local Government Project at Western University. Strong mayor powers give Dilkens the ability to hire and fire nearly all staff members within the City of Windsor. However, Dilkens has delegated that authority to the CAO for any position below manager. Lyons said the mayor's control of the employment of the people who lead the department that Deneau now works in, can create worrying perceptions. "What this situation elicits, you know, is also concerns about how the powers over senior members of administration could leak kind of deeper into the organization, or affect the behaviour of people deeper within the organization when they're doing things like hiring people," said Lyons. All paperwork and processes were followed, says CAO In a statement issued to media on Tuesday, Mensour wrote: "As part of the recruitment, all required paperwork and processes were followed, including completion of a family relationship form." "This process is in place to ensure that there is never a direct reporting relationship between related parties." Mensour said that Deneau had applied to two other positions with the city in the past but was not hired. On Deneau's LinkedIn profile, she lists 27 years of experience working as a project manager with a company called Creative Realities, Inc. — an IT consulting firm based out of Kentucky. As a project manager with parks, recreation and facilities, Deneau "will provide overall management for every aspect of the design, development and implementation of Recreation & Facilities project management initiatives," according to the job posting. The posting said that Deneau will be expected to create reports that she may be required to present to senior management or city council. Deneau's first day of work was May 20.
Yahoo
26-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Downtown office tower revitalized into apartments, restaurant space
DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN) — Dayton has seen billions of dollars in investment downtown in recent years, and one former commercial office tower is being transformed into new living spaces and a restaurant. The Deneau Tower was once home to 22 floors of office space. But after being abandoned over a decade ago, the tower has been revamped, turning it into something Dayton has never seen before. 'It's not very often that you're revitalizing a 22-story high rise tower,' said Trent Mead, Deneau project manager. After nearly three years of construction, the Windsor Companies is set to reopen Deneau Tower. The former office building has been turned into 147 residential units, including studio, one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments and six penthouses, along with a gym and a commercial restaurant. 'I've watched this place grow astronomically within the last few years, and I'm thankful Windsor has been a part of that,' said Amanda Cunningham, Windsor Companies dist. property manager. Windsor Companies acquired the building six years ago, starting construction several years later. According to project manager Trent Mead, they had to completely gut the building for the project. 'Every wall, we started from scratch,' said Mead. 'Really the most difficult part of it was finding the areas where our mechanicals can go.' The energy cost was also too high to sustain with the previous stable exterior glass windows, which is a reason the last owners sold the property. But thanks to first-of-its-kind insulated glass, the new building will actually save energy. 'We are hoping vacuum-insulated glass makes its way to North America, and we're kind of the stepping stone of that,' said Mead. 'We hope to provide the highest energy efficiency apartments in the Dayton area.' Windsor Companies is not new to Dayton — they have six downtown properties and 12 located in central Ohio. Cunningham says the Deneau is their latest and largest project yet, designed to be modern with a touch of Italian fashion. It's something that will not only be new for their company, but also re-energize the entire city of Dayton. 'The renovation of this building is beyond a renovation, its a revival installation of Dayton, its culture, its history,' said Cunningham. The Deneau is set to open at the beginning of April for their first wave of residents, with more set to come in the coming months. To learn more about the building, . Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
