It's been a little over a two year process but an annexation deal between the City of Yorkton and the RM of Orkney has been approved meaning council can go ahead with development plans in and around the area of the airport.
The city officially received approval from the Saskatchewan Municipal Board late last week and as such takes over full responsibility of land that while city owned, was previously governed by the RM of Orkney.
It's a fair deal says Mayor James Wilson, adding the only sad part is, it took so long to reach an agreement. "We're pleased," he says, "that after nearly two and a half years of negotiations with the municipality, the board's ruling was within one per cent of the city's original offer." A compensation package will cost the city just over $191,000, money that was previously set aside for just this purpose.
"Now we have the ability to start planning and investing dollars. You don't want to do that when the land is governed in someone else's jurisdiction," says Wilson. While the land in question was city owned all along, decisions regarding it were made by the RM of Orkney and as well, any taxes associated with the land were paid to the RM rather than the city.
"If we're going to be investing in those properties, then we need to be receiving the revenue off of that land to pay for the services provided."
If the city wants to continue moving forward and meet the growing demands of residential, industrial and commercial developments, it will need to expand into new areas. While much of the subject land is already occupied - with the landfill site, the airport and the wastewater treatment facility - additional lands can now be prepared for residential and commercial development. Annexation will add 450 acres for industrial development and 400 acres for residential/commercial.
The plan, says David Putz, City Manager, is to start developing the land this September. The process could take two to three years but the city is prepared to expedite the process should the need arise.
"We needed this land," says Wilson. "You can't restrict development taking place. I think the Saskatchewan Municipal Board realized this. You never confine a city, block it in so it can't continue to grow because it's for the benefit of the people... if you restrict development, you harm employment opportunities, you ultimately harm the people of the area..."
Wilson maintains, other than the RM itself, no other party expressed any objection to the annexation. He also says at issue was never the idea of annexation, but rather the topic of compensation. In fact, he states, the new deal will not cause hardship to the RM but instead it will be financially beneficial as well as provide it cost savings. "It's apparent that the RM's tax loss is not significant relative to the potential cost savings it would enjoy by not having to service the subject lands and it is certainly not significant relative to the total tax base and overall financial position of the RM."
It's a shame a deal couldn't be reached without resorting to a formal process, says Wilson, but in the end it will set a precedent and "a fair deal has been made."
