Paul Johnson has run Hamilton's emergency operations centre throughout the pandemic — and after over 10 years with the city, he's leaving for the City of Toronto.

Johnson will be taking on the position of deputy city manager, community and social services after the Labour Day weekend. He'll report to Toronto city manager Chris Murray — who also filled that same role in Hamilton for a decade before leaving in 2018.

"It's definitely first and foremost a loss for the city, and he will not be easy to replace," said city manager Janette Smith, who said it may take three or four months to find a new lead.

"I'm also very excited for him."

Smith and Jason Thorne, general manager of planning and economic development, are the emergency operations centre (EOC) lead alternates. The centre acts as a command central for the city's pandemic response.

"It's not just about who's going to take on the lead of the EOC, but it's also what does the EOC look like going forward," she said. "We still have the delta variant. There's still a role to be monitoring while public health continues their vaccination program, but there isn't as much emergency response to do as everything is reopening."

In Toronto, Johnson will be responsible for a range of areas, such as children's services, housing, seniors services and long-term care, as well as paramedics. He said he's excited to "help make a difference in Toronto."

Part of that picture, Johnson said, will be tipping into pandemic recovery and looking at ways to make communities more fair for the people who live there.

"Some parts of our communities aren't fully participating in cities... they feel excluded, they are excluded, and they have barriers to participation, which is hurting all of us," he said.

Johnson noted that GTHA municipalities will continue to come together to talk issues such as housing affordability, mental health and addictions and transportation.

"Those issues do not stop at the border of Toronto and adjacent municipalities, not do they stop at the border of Hamilton," he said.

Mayor Fred Eisenberger, Johnson, and Dr. Elizabeth Richardson — the city's medical officer of health — have streamed weekly COVID-19 updates since the pandemic began in March 2020.

Sometimes Hamilton has responded to the crisis in "less than optimal ways," Johnson said — such as the renting of hotel rooms for people experiencing homelessness and temporary set ups for shelter overflow.

Now it's time to think about why this occurred, he said, noting a lack of affordable housing and set up of shelter systems that facilitate viruses like COVID-19 to spread.

"The long list of things that are wrong are there. The question becomes, where will priorities be placed. I think for Hamilton, that's the conversation that needs to happen as we exit out of the crisis mode of this pandemic, and it's certainly the conversation that Toronto's having as well."

He said new deals need to be struck with provincial and federal governments.

Johnson started work for the city in 2010, after spending 15 years at Wesley Urban Ministries — of which over a decade was as executive director.

Smith said Johnson took the safety of others as his personal responsibility. Eisenberger said he has been a great leader who worked "tirelessly."

"He's the kind of guy you don't want to lose," he said. "He's up to the challenge."

Johnson filled four years as the city's director of neighbourhood and community initiatives. Then from 2015 to 2018, he led the city's light-rail transit (LRT) project — an off-and-on again project that the federal and provincial government committed $3.4 billion funds in 2021 to build — before becoming the general manager of healthy and safe communities.

That included overseeing social services, affordable housing, child care centres, and the city's homelessness response.

He starts in the Toronto role Sept. 7, but says he'll still be sitting his seats at Tim Hortons field cheering on the Ticats.

"My home is still Hamilton, but this opportunity to go and learn a lot about a city that has certainly been one I've connected with in all sorts of ways for years is exciting," he said.