The race is on, as of April 21, when the last possibility for a candidate to withdraw closed at 4 p.m., and city voters will have a total of five names on the ballot in the council byelection, to be held on Wednesday, May 18.
As of the close of nominations, the candidates include realtor Winston Bailey, accountant Melanie Sorensen, Community Futures manager Cory Harkness, SaskTel analyst Andrew Kerr and school bus driver Cameron Weber.
The byelection is being held to fill the seat left vacant by Dave Craigen, who resigned from city council for personal and medical reasons. (Interviews were previously run with Bailey and Sorensen.)
Harkness, who currently serves as the general manager for Sunrise Community Futures in Weyburn, has lived in Weyburn for nine years, and with wife Darla they are raising two boys.
"I had considered running before, and when this came up, the timing was right to put my name in," said Harkness. "I want to be involved in the process of making Weyburn a better place to live and do business in."
He served on the board of the Weyburn Chamber of Commerce for four years, and said, "I thought it would be good to bring my experience, education and opinions to city council. I do bring a business perspective."
His interest is in seeing not only new businesses come to the city, but to see existing businesses be retained in the city and to expand, which in turn bring more jobs and more families to the community.
"I want to see Weyburn grow and offer a high standard of living for our families and for future generations," said Harkness. "I want to see a consistent approach to economic development. I want Weyburn to be a destination of choice for businesses and families."
Harkness noted he would also like to see a better partnership develop with the RM of Weyburn, and for the city to have fiscal transparency, "so that the citizens of Weyburn can see what their dollars are being spent on, line by line, and what the city is doing for families."
Andrew Kerr works as a technical analyst for SaskTel, and with wife Mandy are raising two children.
"Both my wife and I grew up here in Weyburn. We lived in Regina for a few years, but we always wanted to raise our kids here, so when an opportunity arose, we came back," said Kerr.
Prior to entering the council race, Kerr sat on the board of directors for a non-profit group in Regina, and believes that experience, coupled with the expertise he brings as an analyst, can be used on city council.
"I've been thinking about running in the general election, and when this spot opened, I talked about it with my wife, and thought it I was going to do it then, it's worth going for it now," he explained.
Asked why he wanted to put his name in for city council, Kerr said, "I love this city and where it's going. But there are certain times when I questioned certain decisions that were made a certain way, so I'd like to be a part of that whole process."
One issue that is important to him is accessibility; he said he has talked to officials at City Hall about areas of the city that could be improved for full accessibility.
"In my role with SaskTel, one of the things I do is to do research and recommend solutions. I have to research the issue and the requirements of the people who are requesting changes in a product or service, and find out what the solution is and what the costs are. That's something council needs to do a lot of," said Kerr.
He added he could also bring the perspective of someone raising a young family, which is a demographic that's sometimes not represented on council, and can offer his viewpoint on the sorts of issues a family faces.
Cameron Weber is making his second attempt to win a seat on council, after running in the 2006 general election. A resident of the area since 1976, he and wife Gail raised three children on a farm southwest of Weyburn, and he was part of a pastoral team at Weyburn Gospel Assembly for 17 years. He's also been a member of a number of boards and committees, including 10 years with the Youth Center (he's currently vice-chair) and the Community Low Income Centre. On behalf of the latter group, he is also currently a member of the Weyburn Housing Advisory Committee, and housing is one of the top issues he feels council has to deal with.
"I wouldn't have to be brought up to speed on that issue," said Weber. "I'd like to be on council to address the housing issue."
Other issues he would like to have a voice on includes a suggestion to build the Tatagwa walkway out towards the Wal-Mart/Canadian Tire area. "They did the walkway around the north side of town, but this I see more as a need than a want."
He also would like the city to keep up better with line-painting on its major roads and arteries, and to put in turning lanes instead of a four-way stop at the intersection of 16th Street and First Avenue by Zippy Mart.
Weber said he also supports the new hospital, but would like to see the old hospital renovated and used instead of being demolished, and (after renovations) use it to house doctors' offices and a walk-in medical clinic.
As for why he would like to serve on council now, Weber commented, "I have the time now, with the kids grown up. I have time available to put into committee work and stuff that needs to be done. I'd make it a priority if I was elected; Weyburn is a great place to live and bring up your family,"
