The next municipal election may be a few months away yet, but it has already become a major point of discussion for Estevan residents.
Obviously the bulk of the conversation is about who will be the city's next mayor. Thus far only Roy Ludwig has declared his candidacy. Ludwig is Estevan's longest serving councillor with almost 20 years on the job and has a wealth of experience in many different facets of our municipal government. He was also the chairman of the committee that led the construction of Spectra Place and is currently the chairman of the regional health committee which has played a major role in alleviating the doctor shortage in Estevan and area.
But as is human nature, many people are more focused on who isn't there instead of who is and have begun to wonder if anyone will step up and challenge Ludwig for the mayor's chair. The only other member of council to express any interest in running for mayor, thus far, is Chris Istace. In an interview Monday, the first term councillor said he hopes to return to city hall for a second go around but was still undecided if he would run for mayor or council.
Not having an election for mayor is obviously not without precedent here in Estevan. In fact it has become the norm as Gary St. Onge went uncontested in his last election. John Len also ran uncontested once in the '90s.
So, while it remains to be seen who ends up taking over from St. Onge, one thing there is no debating is that whoever takes over has some challenges facing them.
Obviously the continued growth of the city is huge. There are all manner of opportunities out there for Estevan to grow, but the city needs to ensure it is in a position to take advantage of those possibilities.
The lack of housing - which I suppose is tied into the growth issues - and the local medical situation will also require the attention of the incoming mayor.
However, I would suggest the biggest job facing the new mayor is one of public relations.
Unfortunately, there is a certain level of negativity when it comes to Estevan. As you may have read last week, I made note of a recent item in our lovely Cheers and Jeers section in which a writer proclaimed Estevan as a lame place. My opinion of the writer of said opinion is that if they feel that way they should leave. And I feel the writer should take those who feel the same way with him.
Interestingly enough, the author of the lame comment has replied with a letter to the editor. In it, he lays out reasoning behind the comment and I'm fairly certain challenges me to a fight.
Unfortunately we have some questions about the authorship of the letter and can't run it at this point. Either way, I would renew my earlier point - if this place bothers you so much, and judging by the letter it clearly does, you really should leave.
Anyhow, while I have been happy to hear a lot of people rallying behind their city in the wake of the lame comment, the undeniable truth is that there is a strong layer of negativity and apathy when it comes to our community. They might be in the minority in terms of opinion, but just like the old adage about the squeaky wheel getting the grease, those with the negative opinions seem to be the ones that are heard the most.
Which, as I said, creates a challenge for the upcoming mayor. Along with the staff at city hall, the new head muckety-muck needs to find out why these negative opinions exist and do what they can to remedy them - within reason of course, since there are some people who are just miserable and will be never be happy.
It would easy to say that we should just let the malcontents continue to lie in the weeds and wallow in their own misery. But that isn't really an option if this city wants to grow into what it could, and should, become. After all, if you're an investor and looking to build in a certain city, are you going to build in a place where the residents have such a low opinion of their own community? Yes, there are dozens of other factors involved but if you don't think something like that has an impact, you are wrong.
Let's use Regina as an example.
In the late '90s, it would have been hard to find a city with a worse image problem than Regina. People didn't want to be there and businesses didn't want to do business there.
Then came Pat Fiacco. The local businessman took over as mayor and immediately set about trying to improve his city's image. Early on it seemed as though he was less a mayor than a glorified cheerleader. But clearly there was a plan at play.
Through measures such as their I Love Regina campaign, Fiacco and his staff did a great job of restoring civic pride in the capital. And, I would say, not coincidentally, the city has enjoyed a rebirth. Its population has exploded and there seems to be a new business corridor or residential development popping up every week.
Yes, it is a gross oversimplification to say that the act of restoring civic pride is responsible for all that has gone on in Regina. But it would also be a massive mistake to say it hasn't played a significant role in what has happened there.
Here in Estevan, the community is obviously booming, but there is a feeling that the best is yet to come. Will we get there? A lot of things have to happen such as getting a handle on housing and the city making sure it is ready to meet the needs of the businesses that want to be here. But the new mayor and city staff will also need to take a serious look at improving the city's public image.
If someone looking to move to Estevan gets a sense of that negativity, they might be less inclined to move here or stay here. The same goes for a business owner.
It may seem like a small issue in the big picture, but as we have seen before, when a lot of small issues build up, you will soon find there is a big issue. And with so much potential on the horizon, the city doesn't need any issues, big or small, to stall its growth.
