Managing the Energy City's rapid growth will be one of the primary jobs for the City of Estevan in 2011.
In a year-end interview with The Mercury, Mayor Gary St. Onge took a look back at the city's accomplishments and a look forward at the agenda for 2011.
St. Onge said although the past year presented many challenges, he was happy with the amount of work they were able to complete.
"We got most of the projects done that we were planning to do last year," said St. Onge. "The rain hampered us a little bit so there were certain things that didn't get done. But we were lucky it was pretty nice in November, it could have been worse."
Among the 2010 highlights pointed to the ongoing construction of Spectra Place. Work on the facility took some major strides over the past year and it's expected the arena will be ready for the March 25 arena fundraising dinner.
Although it wasn't a high profile project, St. Onge said he was happy to complete the drainage project on the west end of Third Street. He noted council has been toying with the subject since he was a councillor and it was nice to finally get that done for residents in the area.
"That was huge because those people have been looking for better drainage for all these years. I was there once when it was raining and I watched what came out of the tube in the valley and it is unbelievable how much water comes out of there."
Other highlights he touched on were:
The Glen Peterson Industrial Park. Lots in the park have been on sale for months and the first lift of asphalt was completed in 2010.
Work on the various parks and walkways in the Trojan Subdivision began in 2010, particularly work on Trojan's south park.
"That won't be quite finished off this year but we have $200,000 (in the budget) for the south park. That will be nice, the people have been waiting for that park for quite some time."
St. Onge said he has been happy with the snow removal on sidewalks in the downtown core and other areas. The City hired a contractor to clean snow on the sidewalks which has increased accessibility for residents.
That same contractor also carried out the boulevard improvement project on the eastern portion of Fourth Street. The grass boulevards were dug up and replaced with rocks, giving the area a much neater, uniform look.
St. Onge said he was happy with how the project turned out and noted it was well received by most residents in the area.
"Some who didn't like them in the beginning now think they are pretty good. Some of the guys who did complain never did take care of their boulevards."
2010 was also the first year the City and RM of Estevan began collecting a health levy from taxpayers. St. Onge said they have used a portion of the money to help pay for accommodations for some of the city's new doctors.
"We have one of the doctors in our apartment that we are paying for," he said. "There is another doctor coming shortly here. Now, we are supposed to have a meeting in January with Sun Country and we want to see where we are in terms of some equipment and the ultrasound and maybe a CAT scan down the road."
The watermain replacement project continued in 2010 and St. Onge said crews got all of the work done with the exception of a few touch-ups that will be completed in 2011.
Although the City is not directly involved in the project, St. Onge said the Energy Training Institute, which is currently under construction in the Glen Peterson Industrial Park, is a big deal for Estevan.
"We don't even know how big it is going to be down the road," said St. Onge. "It could be huge.
Looking towards 2011, St. Onge said he continues to look forward to the opening of Spectra Place.
He is also excited about the provincial government's pledge to fund the municipal operating grant program. Municipalities will receive a full one per cent of the provincial sales tax in 2011 which will mean an extra $500,000 in funding for the City.
The City will also be taking another look at recycling in 2011. St. Onge said they will consider instituting a door-to-door recycling system or a combination of door-to-door and the recycling centre on Sixth Street.
"We will have a better idea of what the provincial government is going to pay for. And if the citizens have to pay for it, then we may decide that rather than make them pay for it, they will have an opportunity to take it to (Sixth Street) and those who want to pay for it can.
"We are going to have a town hall meeting and I think there will be a lot of people that will come out and really push for that. It's going to be very interesting."
Traffic lights will also be an issue in the upcoming year. There are plans for a set of lights at the intersection of Rooney Road and Kensington Avenue. There will also a left turn signal for traffic in the north-south direction at the intersection of Fourth Street and Souris Avenue. They are also looking to put lights up at the intersection of Kensington and Devonian. These will likely be vehicle-activated lights.
St. Onge added much of the focus in 2011 will be on ensuring the City is growing enough to meet the demands placed on it. He said for the most part, Estevan is ready to handle the continued growth with affordable housing the primary issue they will need to get a better grasp of.
"That is the only part that is really holding us back. We still need apartments right now. If we had all the housing in place right now, things would be really going."
A developer is currently eyeing Estevan for a new subdivision in the open area north of Wellock Road. St. Onge said although nothing has been finalized, he remains confident the developer will move ahead.
"We are supposed to meet with them within the next few weeks and find out if they are serious. These guys are developers as opposed to builders so I would be surprised if it doesn't go ahead."
St. Onge said the decision of the developer will have a big impact on the City's own development plans for the year. If the project goes forward, they may not need to create any new lots. If it doesn't proceed, new lots and a potential modular home park will become front and centre on their agenda.
