STURGIS - The Saskatchewan Urban Municipalities Association (SUMA) East Central regional meeting was held virtually on November 3.
The Mayor of Sturgis, Don Olson was the only one in the area that was able to attend the virtual meeting. “SUMA is always a good opportunity to talk to other communities in the area,” said Olson.
The meeting focused on five main topics: governance, advocacy, communications, capacity building, and physical sustainability and efficiency. “The Police Act was also an important topic. The Police Act is 30 years old and there is a proposal on the table to rewrite the act with increased costs rising each year. Communities are faced with a four per cent increase each year retroactive over the last five years; from 2017 to 2021 which equates to a 20 per cent increase overall,” said Olson.
The provincial building bylaw which goes into effect in 2024 will impact all farms and communities and will be governed by the Federal Canadian Building Code Act. The municipal elections will be possibly moved to September or May in 2024. Discussions also took place on community development that included: strategies, road maintenance, immigration and resolutions.
“The guest speaker was great, he talked about some of the reasons why administrative staff leave their positions and how to help retain them. The final discussion concentrated around the building of a new Yorkton Regional Hospital and the need for regional municipal participation.
“It was a great meeting and I remain hopeful that the SUMA 2022 convention will be held in-person, planned for April 3 to 6, 2022,” concluded Olson.STURGIS=
