Brenda Halloran knows what her next career move will be.
She’s just keeping it to herself – at least for now.
“Right now, let’s get the new mayor and council in,” she told CTV News.
“I will let everybody know in January.”
Monday night marked Halloran’s last Waterloo council meeting as the city’s mayor.
She was first elected in 2006, and opted not to run in this past October’s election.
Whatever her plans for the future may be, she says she doesn’t plan to leave Waterloo behind – especially since she sits on several boards in the community.
“I love this place,” she said.
“I’ve been asked to do so many things, and I keep agreeing – and I’m OK with that.”
Coun. Mark Whaley – poised to start his fourth term in office, making him the longest-serving member of Waterloo’s council – says he’s happy for Halloran, whatever her next job turns out to be.
“She’s looking for a change, and I know that she’ll end up doing something else dynamic,” he said.
As for working with incoming mayor Dave Jaworsky, Whaley said he could see lots of common areas of interest, particularly economic development.
Halloran likewise had nothing but praise for Jaworsky and the newly elected council.
“I’m really excited about what they’re going to do, and I have great faith in their capacity to take the city even further,” she said.
Asked for highlights of her eight years in office, Halloran cited meeting the Queen, overseeing the construction of new facilities for the city, and witnessing the growth of BlackBerry.
That name comes up again when asked for the biggest challenges Halloran faced, although she says it was one the city weathered well.
“We never saw an increase in houses on the market or people having difficulty financially,” she said.
“Out of that very difficult situation, we’ve seen some great successes.”
