The City of Prince George is losing its communications director.
Julie Rogers confirmed to The Citizen by email on Friday, Jan. 17 that she has submitted her resignation effective Jan. 31, but said she wasn’t comfortable providing an interview at this time.
Mayor Simon Yu said in a phone interview that he is disappointed to be losing Rogers’s experience and knowledge of the city, especially since she won a prestigious award for her work in Prince George.
“In my opinion, she has been doing a great job in the last couple of years,” Yu said. “It’s not a good thing (her departure), especially when Prince George only has four people involved with communication for a city of our size.”
He said he was glad she was going to be around through the city’s budget deliberations process, which will take place on Jan. 20 and 22.
City manager Walter Babicz said during a meeting that Rogers did not provide a reason for her departure, according to Yu.
Since joining the city in October 2021, Rogers has given its communications department an irreverent bent.
Social media posts under Rogers’s tenure with sayings like “Snow: it’s not our fault,” and “Gross! Scoop your poopsicles!” as well as another describing the anatomy of a pothole, earned Prince George the Canadian Public Relations Society award for best Canadian digital communications campaign of the year in 2022.
