Premier Brad Wall visited Carlyle on Thursday, June 2 to meet with town council, discuss concerns with residents and to catch a glimpse of the new wheelchair lift at the Community Complex.
Carlyle was part of a two-day tour by the Premier, accompanied by MLA Dan D'Autremont, who visited the towns of Carlyle, Oxbow, Carnduff and Redvers.
The day in Carlyle started off at the town office with town council in attendance. Dickens Festival representatives were on hand and in costume, to present the Premier with a package of goodies, accompanied by an invitation to visit the festival this year.
With introductions completed, the discussion quickly turned to the challenges and opportunities faced by the community and its residents. The topics spanned the community but mostly focused on the damages created by this year's excess water. Council members spoke of the increased pressures on town infrastructure such as the sewer system and roads, the challenges faced by producers during spring seeding and its overall progress, and changes to programming offered to municipalities and producers.
The Premier and his cabinet will be sending out a formal request to municipalities for an outline of the municipal costs caused by the flooding and its damages, in an attempt to gain a full understanding of the pressures created by these natural events. Premier Wall said "We are going to need to hear from the municipal governments the level of the damage in the southeast and all over the province. There are isolated occurrences throughout the province." He stated "We are hearing the same things over and over again as we visit communities in south eastern Saskatchewan. The communities are having the same challenges and it is important to have a good idea of what you guys [town council] are facing."
Town council also highlighted the town's new developments starting with the development of a new sub-division to meet the housing requirements of the town, the two hotel developments, and the on-going movement of businesses into the community. They also noted the work being completed on the water treatment plant. The Premier left with a clear understanding of not only the challenges that the community is facing, but the successes it has had along the way.
The tour progressed to the Community Complex where representatives from the rink, Roger Fafard and Madeleine Valentine, were on hand to discuss the development of the wheelchair lift. The wheelchair lift has been partially funded by the Community Initiatives Fund offered by the Saskatchewan government. After seeing the lift, Premier Wall said "Obviously this community has a great idea to make this rink a little more wheelchair accessible...It is a great local project."
More than 20 people were in attendance to speak with the Premier. The attendees had an opportunity to discuss their growing concerns and request answers as to what would be done to address these concerns. Once again, water was a prevalent topic of discussion for many individuals within the Carlyle area.
Speaking with Premier Wall, it was clear that these concerns were something that he had heard before. "It is nice to see things first hand. Like I said to the folks here from the different RMs, there is no substitute to that. For two reasons. One, to be able to see. Things get approved in Regina and what do they really look like? So that's nice to see. But on a day like today, people are talking not about that necessarily, but [about] the weather. And all of what that means to the area's economy. So this was valuable to hear first hand from them. MLAs do a great job reporting back to us. But there is no substitute to coming and seeing that."
The Premier went out to discuss the impact that the MEEP (municipal economic enhancement program) money allocated to municipal governments resulting from an excess in resource revenue in 2008 has had on the communities. This excess allowed the government to lower taxes, pay off debt and provide municipalities with money and few strings attached. "I liked how MEEP worked because there wasn't a big bureaucracy that came along with it. And I think municipalities know better than the government in Regina what they need to do."
Premier Wall also spoke of the increase in dollars that the government has provided municipalities over the years. The water treatment plant, a $4.5 million project, is partially funded by some these financial boosts. "We have always increased revenue sharing to the municipalities which helps with their operating dollars, not necessarily their capital, which the municipal economic enhancement program (MEEP) was all about. So we have historically increased revenue sharing with the town of Carlyle." Carlyle has seen an increase from $129,000 in 2007 to $250,000 this year. That has meant an increase of $120,000.
Of the visit to Carlyle, not only the Premier was pleased with what he saw and the feedback he received, but the Mayor as well. "I think the day went really well. We were glad to have the opportunity to discuss things with him" said Mayor Don Shirley.
