The Path
Career
Caribbean — Current Chapter
After 25 years of Canadian municipal leadership, David relocated to Saint Lucia—not as a retiree, but to understand the Eastern Caribbean on its own terms. Over eight years he’s built trusted relationships across Soufrière and beyond, trained disadvantaged youth in digital skills, helped small businesses establish their online presence, and developed the local knowledge and networks that underpin serious business in the region.
Municipal Executive Leadership
David’s municipal career started at a front counter in the City of Calgary, processing development permits and dealing with citizens face to face. It ended with him managing a $50 million-plus budget, 350 employees, and every department in the City of Fort Saskatchewan—police, fire, recreation, parks, public works, planning, finance, wellness—while simultaneously serving on the board of Alberta’s Industrial Heartland Association and as the administrative representative for the Alberta Capital Regional Alliance.
Over a decade as a municipal chief executive—recognized by the Canadian Association of Municipal Administrators with their 10-Year Service Award—David led four Alberta municipalities ranging from communities of 200 to the City of Fort Saskatchewan at 25,000. As CAO he reported directly to elected officials in a fully public, fully transparent environment. His first two appointments were direct employment; the remaining two were contracted through Dubauskas Associates. He also served as governance advisor to Enoch Cree Nation, helping them build a local government organization from the ground up.
Dubauskas Associates — Consulting & Advisory
Beyond the interim CAO placements, Dubauskas Associates delivered specialized consulting engagements across Alberta: facilitating two contentious community plebiscites—one for a community centre, the other for a municipal administration building—financial risk analysis for private land developers, and conceiving the Edmonton Region Joint Ortho-photo Initiative with its partnership protocols and data sharing agreements. The firm also provided annexation advisory services and governance development for First Nations.
Technology & Innovation Leadership
Before moving into executive leadership, David spent twelve years at Strathcona County—one of Alberta’s largest municipalities, with over 2,000 staff. He conceived and built their Geographic Information Systems program from scratch—the one that went on to win both international awards.
He transitioned into broader IT leadership overseeing enterprise financial systems, then moved into the Corporate Planning department as its sole Strategic Initiatives Manager—tackling cross-government issues: regional partnerships, sustainability, industrial growth, and policy alignment. The role encompassed chairing the Beaver Hills GIS Committee for what would become a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, serving on the GeoConnections Advisory Node for Natural Resources Canada’s national geospatial infrastructure, and leading a shared regional GIS for the Alberta Capital Regional Alliance—work that contributed to the province legislating GIS as a tool for municipal collaboration.
Early Career & Entrepreneurial Foundations
David’s early career spanned spatial data collection for the Calgary Regional Planning Commission and subdivision and development work using early AutoCAD mapping technology—the ground-level experience that taught him how municipalities actually function.
Along the way he launched his own businesses: Wood Tempered Development, a land development consulting firm that served private investors through the full cycle from pro-forma analysis and financing through land purchase, permits, design, tendering, and sales; and later GeoData Information Services, which created the first digital Alberta Motor Association (AMA) provincial road map and delivered spatial data collection for the federal government’s Canada Lands Survey.
