Identity area
Type of entity
Corporate body
Authorized form of name
Vancouver (B.C.). Engineering Services
Parallel form(s) of name
Standardized form(s) of name according to other rules
Other form(s) of name
- Engineering Services (1995-)
- Engineering Department (1886-1995)
- Department of Works [191*?]
Identifiers for corporate bodies
Description area
Dates of existence
1886-
History
Since its foundation, Engineering Services (or, as it was referred to until 1995, the Engineering Department) has been the largest department in the City administration, providing many of the City's mandated functions for developing and maintaining the City's infrastructure of roads and bridges, waterworks, sewers and sanitation.
The Vancouver Incorporation Act required the appointment of an engineer, and the City did so under Bylaw #1 (1886). Despite technological changes, the department has remained remarkably consistent in functional responsibilities: over the years, the Engineering Department/Engineering Services has been responsible for the construction and maintenance of streets, lanes, sewers, water works, and bridges, as well as for traffic management, sanitation, garbage collection, and parking. With the rapid growth of the city, the Department’s role changed from a supervisory role (overseeing and inspecting the work of contractors) to having full-scale operations divisions.
The City Engineer first reported to the Board of Works (1886-1956), then to the Board of Administration (1956-1974), and subsequently to the City Manager (1974-).
There were a few instances of major reorganization in the history of the Engineering Department. Following a departmental review by external consultants in 1954, the department underwent a major restructuring of its organizational framework. Formerly, divisions had been based on the type of operation each performed. The review called for three basic divisions. One major division was for administration and design and the other for operations. Each of these divisions would oversee the different functions as they related to design or operation. A third division for traffic management continued to exist in the same fashion as before the rearrangement. This structure remained in place for only a few years.
Another major reorganization occurred in 1966 when the Electrical Department was incorporated as a division within the Engineering Department (impetus for this change came from the formation of the Permits and Licenses Department which took over inspection activities while Engineering took over engineering and works aspects.)
The following individuals have served as City Engineer (from 1995, the City Engineer was also referred to as “General Manager” of the then renamed Engineering Services):
• John P. Lawson, 1886-1890;
• Henry B. Warren, 1890-1891;
• Thomas H. Tracy, 1891-1905;
• William A. Clement, 1905-1911;
• Frederick L. Fellowes, 1911-1924;
• Charles Brakenridge, 1924-1946;
• Charles A. Battershill, 1946-1949;
• John C. Oliver, 1949-1956;
• Randolph M. Martin, 1956-1971;
• Gordon H. Lawson, 1971-1974;
• William H. Curtis, 1974-1991;
• David Rudberg, 1991-[2004]
• Tom Timm, [2004]–2010
• Peter Judd 2010–2015
Functions, occupations and activities:
The broad range of functions of the Department has included:
- Streets and bridges design and maintenance, including snow/ice removal and sanding;
- Sewerage and drainage planning and maintenance,
- Water supply and distribution,
- Refuse collection and disposal,
- Transportation planning and traffic management, including accommodating for special events,
- Street lighting and utilities,
- Inspection responsibilities (until the creation of the Permits and Licenses Department),
- City planning responsibilities (under the direction of the Town Planning Commission) until the creation of the Planning Department in 1954,
- Street Decoration (in conjunction with the Street Decoration Committee) since 1954.
Places
Legal status
Functions, occupations and activities
Mandates/sources of authority
Internal structures/genealogy
General context
Relationships area
Related entity
Identifier of related entity
Category of relationship
Dates of relationship
Description of relationship
Related entity
Identifier of related entity
Category of relationship
Dates of relationship
Description of relationship
Related entity
Identifier of related entity
Category of relationship
Dates of relationship
Description of relationship
Related entity
Identifier of related entity
Category of relationship
Dates of relationship
Description of relationship
Related entity
Identifier of related entity
Category of relationship
Dates of relationship
Description of relationship
Related entity
Identifier of related entity
Category of relationship
Dates of relationship
Description of relationship
Related entity
Identifier of related entity
Category of relationship
Dates of relationship
Description of relationship
Related entity
Identifier of related entity
Category of relationship
Dates of relationship
Description of relationship
Related entity
Identifier of related entity
Category of relationship
Dates of relationship
Description of relationship
Related entity
Identifier of related entity
Category of relationship
Dates of relationship
Description of relationship
Related entity
Identifier of related entity
Category of relationship
Dates of relationship
Description of relationship
Related entity
Identifier of related entity
Category of relationship
Dates of relationship
Description of relationship
Access points area
Subject access points
Place access points
Occupations
Control area
Authority record identifier
Institution identifier
Rules and/or conventions used
Status
Level of detail
Dates of creation, revision and deletion
Last revised 18-12-2012 by KO
Language(s)
Script(s)
Sources
For City Council records on Engineering activities see series 20, "Subject files - including Council supporting documents" (1886-1975) under "City Engineer" and series 62, "Operational subject files - including Council supporting documents" (1975-1987), particularly the subseries "Streets, transportation and utilities".