Two finalists for selection of Ottawa’s next chief

Two candidates remain in the competition to be Ottawa’s next police chief — one internal and one external, the Citizen has learned.

The second, and believed to be final, round of interviews is to be held Monday with the force’s current interim Chief Steve Bell and a retired deputy chief who worked at another Ontario service.

The two candidates were selected to move forward in the process by the city’s police board — a seven-member body made up of city councillors and municipal and provincial appointees.

The board held the first round of interviews at the beginning of this week. It received 19 applications for the position, whittled that list down to five and now will interview the final candidates again.

Among the five candidates were one woman, at least one visible minority, two retired police officers, officers who worked for the national police force and the Ottawa service’s current interim police chief.

Former Ottawa police chief Charles Bordeleau retired in May. The board — half of its members sworn in just last December with a new term of council — was tasked with choosing not just the new chief but also the service’s new top civilian, the chief administrative officer.

Together, the positions account for half of the force’s senior-most command. The board hired recruiting firm Odgers Berntdson and decided to hold national searches for both positions with concurrent competitions running from June 24 to July 19.

The board held extensive consultation — a town hall, an online survey and targeted community groups for their feedback on issues and challenges facing the police service. From that consultation emerged several themes, among them: the need for a chief who can strengthen relationships with front-line officers, a chief who understands diversity and makes sure the force builds bridges, and a “visible and approachable” leader with “integrity and strength of character.”

The board has not set a timeline for selecting the successful candidate.