Among the items discussed at the Carlyle town council meeting on Mar. 21 was the request for funds and other supports for the annual anti-bullying day.
The meeting moved into initial agenda items, and discussions were held regarding an offer by Regen's Waste Disposal's offer to place a cardboard recycling bin at the town's transfer site.
It had been noted that a considerable amount of cardboard was ending up in the large waste bin located at the site, from both commercial and residential sources.
The decision in the end was to accept the offer of the bin, with an eye to reducing tipping charges on the large waste bin.
At 7:30 p.m. a delegation was welcomed into the council chamber.
Jeff Laforet, a councillor with the Cornerstone School Division and council member for the community of Stoughton, came to solicit support from the town for the annual anti-bullying day.
Set for early May, this would be the second year Carlyle would witness an event held by Carlyle Elementary School and Gordon F. Kells high school.
Laforet explained the plan this year was for students, and members of the public who wish to take part, to form a human chain up and down Main St. in Carlyle.
Pursuant to this, Laforet requested the town close Main St. for approximately one hour on May 3rd, the day planned for the event.
Laforet also requested a donation from the town, in the amount of $500, to help purchase decorations for the day.
Following the presentation, council debated the issue, and in the end unanimously decided to provide the $500 requested, and to look into the street closure as well.
Two motions were also defeated at the meeting, each facing a three-to-three split in voting, which is sufficient to defeat a motion in a municipality.
A request to purchase software and training to use the software was defeated.
The software, which manages capital assets in the town and keeps track of lifespan, replacement costs, and so forth, was offered as a way for the town to better manage long-term planning by allowing funds to be set aside for replacement and upgrades of infrastructure items.
The cost of the proprietary software and training to use it was pegged at $8,000 plus expenses for staff attending the training.
The second motion was in regards to Bylaw 2012-04, the Utilities Management Bylaw.
The debate focused on the desire to add to the bylaw a prohibition for residential properties to drain weeping tiles and sump pumps directly into the municipal sewer system.
The concern focused on the wording, as some councillors held that it should only include in residences, or residences that underwent upgrades.
Their concern was that the language of the bylaw was such that all properties would be subject to the bylaw.
The bylaw was defeated in a split vote of three-to-three.
Finally, two aspects of the 2012-13 provincial budget brought discussions to the table.
The provincial government has decided to disallow municipalities from offering property tax reductions.
The measure affects Carlyle directly, as Carlyle offers a sliding scale of incentives for early payment of taxes.
The concern voiced at the table focused on whether people would be as prompt to pay their tax balances if there were no incentives offered.
Carlyle offers reduction up to five percent for early payment.
Council is now considering moving the penalties for late payment forward by several months, in the hopes that this would ensure rapid payment of outstanding taxes.
Chief Administrator Huguette Lutz informed council she would look into the matter, and present information at the next meeting.
The second item from the provincial budget that will impact the town was the decision by the provincial government to cease funding the Enterprise Regions.
While Enterprise Saskatchewan continues to be funded in the latest budget, the regional bodies, Saskatchewan South East Enterprise Region in this instance, would no longer receive funding from the province.
The Enterprise Regions were developed after the provincial government disbanded the smaller Regional Economic Development Regions (REDAs) in 2008.
Carlyle was involved in the SSEER Housing Initiative, but until more information can be acquired regarding SSEER itself, all discussions in council of SSEER programs have been suspended.
