SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
Bob Brooks has given a lot of history lessons.

Coun. Bob Brooks is retiring next year from municipal politics after serving seven terms as a city councillor in order to focus on his career with the Department of Industry, Tourism and Investment. - Randi Beers/NNSL photo

He's Yellowknife's longest-sitting city councillor - with seven terms and just under 20 years served - but after the next municipal election the lessons will end because Brooks has announced this year will be his last.

"I don't have too many years left, but I'd like to advance my career and move on that way," he said of his full-time job with the Department of Industry, Tourism and Investment.

"Besides, I'd already put in almost 20 years doing community politics so I wanted to try and take what I learned - and it's a huge learning curve."

Brooks spoke of his achievements, his regrets and the time he accidentally got free publicity while running for his first council seat during an interview with Yellowknifer in December.

"I put out my signs in the 1991 election and it said, 'Bob Brooks for council' and suddenly I saw all these signs appearing that said, 'Bob for the Job' and I said, 'hey, right on,'" said Brooks.

"Well, a man named Bob Findlay (former mayor and city councillor) used to run campaigns where he'd stick out this sign. So I mentioned that to Bob and the next day he wrote 'Findlay' on all his signs in pen."

Brooks won that election and continued to sit on council for the next two decades, minus a few years because of two failed mayoral bids in 1994 and 2000 - although he was appointed councillor in 1997 and served for a year after Coun. John Dalton vacated his seat mid-term.

Going back to the first year he won an election, Brooks remembers advice given to him by former city councillor and Kentucky Fried Chicken franchise owner Len Jason.

"I thought it was the best advice I'd ever heard and I've passed it down to anybody who ever decided to be on council," said Brooks.

"And that advice was - it's fine to change things, update things or whatever but before you make any changes to these things you should at least do your research and find out why it's there in the first place."

Which is why Brooks calls himself the guy who gives history lessons to city council.

"So many councillors come on and say, 'Hey let's do this, I don't agree with that, we need to change this, here's the change I wanna do,' and they don't even know why it's there in the first place -- what problems it's addressing, how it came about," he said.

"Latest council has been really frustrating because a lot of them -- well I will give a quote - unnamed -- but one councillor said to me, 'Whatever previous decisions that were ever made by previous council is wrong' - blanket statement. Anything they said before was wrong. I said, 'OK, maybe I'm getting too old for this.'"

Achievements and regrets from Northland Trailer Park to Kam Lake

Looking back over his career, Brooks considers taking the lead in facilitating Northland Trailer Park water and sewer replacement one of his biggest achievements.

Northland is a private development which needed water and sewer lines replaced because they were 15 years past their due date, problems which came to a head in 2012 when the Canada Housing and Mortgage Corporation stopped insuring trailers in the park because of the state of the infrastructure.

"In Northland we saw the potential for 1,500 to 2,000 people suddenly homeless even though it wasn't the city's job -- it was a private development," said Brooks.

"But (the condo corporation) was not in the position to help itself and there were people who gave advice who said it's not a city problem. I said the day they become homeless you better believe it will become a city problem."

Brooks formed a committee to find an arrangement where the city could front the money for the repairs.

"Administration, I have to say, did a hell of a lot of work because they also saw the (project's) potential and there was a lot of key players who came along and did a lot of work but I was just happy I was a spark to get it going."

In August 2012, council passed a bylaw that allowed the city to secure funding for Northland Trailer Park and the $15.9 million project is now scheduled to be complete next year.

Brooks has regrets as well - most recently over miss-communications that gave rise to large property assessment increases and tax hikes last year.

"Kam Lake is a fabulous example of how we did it wrong," said Brooks, referring to a recent general assessment that went awry after administration didn't mention average property assessment increases of of more than 30 per cent included anomalies with some properties increasing by as much as 90 per cent in areas such as Kam Lake.

"We did all the correct things as far as doing an assessment every seven years and then set the mill rates, but councillors as experienced as myself should have said, 'Geez, the last time we had an assessment it affected one area more than others.'"

"I put myself to blame because I should have asked that question, if we'd asked that question we could have communicated better."

Brooks had some experience to share with prospective councillors who are thinking of running this year.

"You know, it gets into your blood," he said.

"Somebody recently said to me, 'You can't take it personally Bob, you know it's not personal,' and I said flatly, 'it is personal.'"

"Municipal government is the closest order of government to the people. As soon as they pass something on Monday, it could start right now. So I tell people who say it's not personal that it is, and if it's not, you should make it personal."