Career Mirror -- by Mark Sproxton

Mike Morris examines land parcels on a map of Calgary

Crunching beneath his feet, the snow echoes in the quiet of night. It's 8:30 p.m. and one of the City of Calgary's land agents holds high hopes for the upcoming meeting with a local family. After two weeks of trying to schedule a time convenient to everyone, tonight is the night. The land agent has an offer to make on property owned by the family. A roadway extension program means a street will run across the entire property. To meet the growing demands of the city, the land is needed. Sometimes the meetings go well, sometimes they don't.

"Most people don't want to talk to me," explained Mike Morris, a landman with the city's Corporate Properties group. "Because you're talking about houses or properties that people have long ties to, it's not always pleasant. But I've only had the dog sicked on me once, and one guy threatened me with a knife after he invited me into his house. It tests your skills as a negotiator."

Even though the city has the legal ability to appropriate (take possession of) land, Morris said tactfully negotiating a resolution is the preferred method for acquiring municipal land. "One of the best skills you can have is listening to what they are saying and understanding what they're saying. You have to be able to sell your position while understanding his and trying to get the two closer together." Before making an offer to buy the property, Morris will conduct an assessment so he has facts and figures to back up his offer.

Land agents, or landmen (this title is used for males and females), adopt this approach whether they're working for oil and gas companies, private utilities, developers, financial institutions, or municipalities. All are required to acquire property for use by the employer, although municipalities are the only entity that can appropriate land, provided there's proof of public benefit. A land agent in the private sector may be able to work for bonus or incentive pay not available at the city where an entry level landman will earn about $20 per hour.

The niche of property acquisition never entered Morris' career plans when he first attended post-secondary. After taking a few years of university trying to decide what to pursue, Morris put his studies on hold to work full-time for his summer employer, the City of Calgary. Spurred on by the acquisition of a house and a baby on the way, he started to concentrate more seriously on a career. A call from a friend alerted him to a position with the acquisitions department. Morris applied, was interviewed, and eventually landed the job with an understanding that he would complete and pass the required training.

From there, and after hours, and weeks, and months of night school, he eventually worked and studied his way to the top of the landman designations. "It only took 15 years," Morris said, recalling how much he disliked night courses. "You can do it in a shorter time. Olds College has a two-year program that gives you a huge head start. If you want to advance and make more money, you've got to go to school and take the training."

Now he uses his expertise to answer questions from the public about land use, or deal with complaints, or attend public forums, or offer advice to other city departments, such as streets or engineering. Working primarily from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. from Monday to Friday, flexibility is built into his schedule to allow for meetings that are most convenient for property owners.

"I like the variety of people and the variety of situations you encounter," Morris said. "We deal with everyone from the grandma and grandpa who have lived on this corner for 40 years, to the corporate executive, to farmers, and everyone in between. You have to be able to listen and communicate. And communication is more than telling somebody something. You have to be assured they're understanding that something."

While jobs in property acquisition will always be around, Morris said a few select skills will help make newcomers to the career successful. "You have to have good people skills foremost, and certainly you need the technical skills to perform an appraisal properly and efficiently. You can't take things personally. He's not mad at you, he's mad at the city. And if you can't get away from that, you're not going to be effective."