West Central Municipal Government Committee (WCMGC) Update

The WCMGC is moving to enhance its effectiveness. Terms of Reference have been developed for the WCMGC and work is ongoing for the subcommittees. Currently a Terms of Reference have been developed for the Transportation Committee. The remaining committees are dated and do not have a Terms of Reference.

At our next meeting we will be discussing committees that are relevant and the need to add new committees or eliminate dated committees. Terms of References will be developed once the committees are struck/restruck.

The committees currently listed include:

• Assessment,
• Economic Development,
• Education,
• Health, and
• Urban/Rural

SUMA: Meeting with the Ministers of Health

Yesterday I received confirmation that we will be meeting with both Ministers of Health: Dustin Duncan and Randy Weekes next Tuesday morning.

According to provincial legislation municipalities have no role in the delivery of health care. Our role in the past year has been to facilitate a constructive dialogue between provincial, regional, and local representatives for the continued improvement of the delivery of health care in Kindersley and area.

Thank you to Bill Boyd, our MLA, for arranging this meeting.

Update on Building Canada Fund (BCF) Program Design

We are still waiting to hear from the Federal Government regarding the BCF. This fund provides money to municipalities for infrastructure development and replacement. The Town needs this information for both budgeting and planning purposes. What follows is a letter from the President of FCM, Claude Dauphin.

With the 2014 construction season fast approaching, I want to update you on discussions I and others at FCM have been having with the government on the design of the new Building Canada Fund. FCM staff and executive members have been working hard on this issue in conversations with the Prime Minister’s Office, and the offices of Ministers Flaherty and Lebel. Also, I and your FCM Executive met with Minister Flaherty last week to push for more clarification on the government’s progress on program design and intentions for the BCF. We were encouraged by some of Minister Flaherty’s comments, but BCF program details remain unknown. Time is running out for the government to negotiate funding agreements with each province and territory before the 2014 construction season begins. At this stage, we anticipate that the government will announce its intentions for the new BCF before the federal budget is tabled on February 11. We continue to pressure the government to respect our six principles for BCF program design. I have written to Minister Lebel to reiterate our principles, emphasizing that a significant majority of new BCF funding should be allocated to municipalities, asking for recognition of the unique needs of rural, remote and northern communities through the continuity of the Communities Component, and underscoring the need to fund capacity building in asset management. I, your executive, and FCM staff will continue to fervently advocate for our principles for the BCF. Your cities and communities need and deserve a new BCF program that will help us repair and replace critical infrastructure now, and for the future. We will update you further on this issue as information becomes available. Sincerely, Claude Dauphin President

Dog Memorial at Motherwell

This past fall a family buried their beloved dog at the Motherwell Walking Trail near the overflow area. We are looking for this family to let them know that construction will soon start on the pedestrian bridge.

Dog remains at Motherwell Walking Trail near the overflow area.

If you know who this family is can you please ask them to contact the Town so the remains can be moved to a more suitable location; 306.463.2675. The dogs remains may be disturbed by the construction.

Dog Memorial on Motherwell Walking Trail near the overflow.

Thank you for your help.

Municipal Infrastructure Conference

This spring, April 15 - 16, Kindersley is hosting the second annual Saskatchewan Municipal Infrastructure Conference. Last year Humboldt hosted the inaugural conference in which I was a guest speaker.

The tag line is: Plan, Prepare, Execute.

For more information go to the website. You can also email for more information.

Curbside Recycling

This Friday Loraas Environmental will be delivering household recycling bins to subscribers in Kindersley. This initiative is to have curbside recycling collection. In this one bin you can throw papers, cans, plastics, and bottles into the one container to be collected; there are some restrictions which will be made available. The days of sorting recycling are gone.

So far more than 100 homes have signed up for this service. Loraas will collect the recycling every other Friday. The cost is modest at $10 per month or $126 for a year including tax; the fee is to be prepaid.

If you want to sign up please call: 306.463.2008 or email reception.nb@loraas.ca.

Great Plains College Update

Do you want to improve your front line staff customer service? Great Plains College in Kindersley will be hosting a 'Service Best' class February 26 from 8:30 - 4:30 at a cost of $225.

For more information contact Great Plains College.

Sun West Update

Sun West School Division is implementing some school improvement initiatives (SWISI). The project in Kindersley is at Westberry School.

The Westberry project is looking at the effects of social programming on behaviour and achievement. Tammy Diemert's thesis is that if students are having social difficulties at a young age then intervening at a young age will improve their behaviour and achievements as they move through school. The intent is to work with those students to improve their social skills rather than just punish them. Currently Westberry is tracking their program to see if it is making a difference.

Recent studies indicate many children are coming to school without the appropriate social skills to succeed resulting in behavioural problems.

Health Update

Work is still ongoing to enhance and secure the delivery of health services in Kindersley. I hope to be able to say more in about 3 weeks.

More flu vaccines have been ordered. Those receiving their vaccinations may be receiving a nasal spray rather than a needle. The nasal spray is not generally used because of the significant expense.

The Quiet Ones

I can’t think of one civic group in Kindersley that is unimportant. Even more important are the champions and volunteers of our respective groups such as arts, culture, recreation, political and religious. Often it seems we pay more attention to those groups with spokespersons who are most vocal. This week I was reminded that we cannot forget or overlook the quiet champions and volunteers of all of our groups.

If you are one of the quiet ones please don’t be afraid to speak up. Your voice is important and we on Council, your neighbours, and Kindersley need to hear what you have to say.

We have many important decision to make regarding Kindersley on a variety of issues including:

• budget,
• city status,
• economic incentives,
• fire hall,
• implementing traffic study recommendations,
• infrastructure repairs,
• ladder truck for the fire department,
• organizational changes,
• phase 2: West Central Community Centre,
• regional landfill,
• the Events Centre,
• town square,
• waste water treatment,
• water treatment,

 We need to hear from you.

Please email me your thoughts on the new facility.

Jason Kenney: Minister of Employment and Social Development

Next Saturday, February 1, David Anderson, the MP for the riding south of the river, is hosting a reception and banquet with Jason Kenney as guest in Swift Current at the Holiday Inn Express Hotel. The reception starts at 3:00 with the banquet to follow. This is a Conservative Party fundraiser.

 If you would like to attend please email David Anderson.

With the federal ridings redistributed for the next election, Kindersley is will be part of the southwest riding of Saskatchewan rather than the riding that includes Lloydminster and North Battleford.

Brookhollow Estates Update

Brookhollow Estates is still going forward. Infrastructure work has stopped until spring. Earth work has been completed for Phase 1 including staking of lots for title purposes.

We are still working to secure funding for affordable housing.

Moment with the Mayor: Phase 2 Update

Hi Everyone:

Given some of the dynamics surrounding the development of Phase 2 of the West Central Community Centre, Council asked Group 2 Architects to hold two additional public workshops before making a decision on how to proceed with the recommendations Group 2 outlined in its Needs and Operational Assessment final report.

The purpose of the workshops was to help the public:

1.       Understand the choices before them, and the implications, pros and cons of each alternative.

2.       Generate a list of guiding principles¹ that will act as a compass for moving forward.

3.       Create a commitment to work together toward one common goal that benefits the entire community.

 What follows is a summary of the report.

·         Attendance at the workshops was low, with less than 25 people attending both workshops.

·         The first two goals were realized with the participants: people understood the choices before them and a list of guiding principles was developed.

·         According to Group 2 there was not a strong commitment to work together toward one common goal that benefits the entire community.²

·         As a result, Group 2 goes on to say, Council and Administration does not have the social license to proceed with confidence.

As a result of what was heard at the workshops, Group 2 has revised its recommendation from Option B to Option C, a phased approach that identifies construction of the Aquatic Centre first, and other components to follow. Based on our analysis, removing or reducing the barriers is more probable under Option C: A Phased Approach, the report stated.

These are recommendations that inform and guide Council, and are arrived at after extensive community consultation and evaluation. The tough final decision, however, rests with Council. This has been a long process and I appreciate your patience. We are being intentional to ensure that Phase 2 the West Central Community Centre is a success both as a facility and as a project that binds Kindersley together.

Please write or phone if you would like me to discuss a particular topic. If you have any questions or comments, drop me a line at the town office or email me at mayorenns-wind@kindersley.ca.

You can also check out my blog at http://mayorjohn.blogspot.ca/. I appreciate your feedback.

Employment Meeting

On January 20^th I hosted a lunch attended by a few business people to discuss the employment challenges and opportunities in Kindersley. The invitation to lunch was in anticipation of a round table meeting I have February 1^st with Jason Kenney, the Minister of Employment and Social Development for the Government of Canada.

The mission of the Ministry of Employment and Social Development is:

ESDC's mission is to build a stronger and more competitive Canada, to support Canadians in making choices that help them live productive and rewarding lives, and to improve Canadians' quality of life.

To do this, we:

• develop policies that make Canada a society in which all can use their talents, skills and resources to participate in learning, work and their community;

• create programs and support initiatives that help Canadians move through life's transitions—from families with children to seniors, from school to work, from one job to another, from unemployment to employment, from the workforce to retirement;

• create better outcomes for Canadians through service excellence with Service Canada and other partners; and

• engage our employees, establish a healthy work environment, nurture a culture of teamwork, and build our leadership capacity.

Highlights of the lunch conversation include:

·         All of the employers present were facing staffing shortages for a variety of reasons including:

·         Tight labour market,

·         Housing,

·         Lack of training

To overcome the shortage of unemployed people in Kindersley’s labour market employers are recruiting staff from across Canada and around the world. A LMO, Labour Market Opinion, is to be submitted prior to bringing new employees from around the world. Challenges have developed with this program and the problem relates to the differing economic activity across Canada. There is a tension between those in the east who may not want the program because of high unemployment while the west wants the program because of the lack of employees. Other LMO challenges include:

·         Not enough media to satisfy requirements,

·         Expense of LMOs though it was recognized it reduced nuisance applications,

·         A complicated process with many people handling one application,

·         Too many changes in too short a time on an ongoing basis,

·         Long time frame to process application resulting in a delay of 6 – 12 months,

·         Decision makers are geographically removed from the region and community,

·         Too involved and time consuming for businesses, and

·         There is no avenue to expedite applications due to local need.

The labour force has also changed regarding both the skills and training candidates for employment have and the work ethic. Some sectors are facing a shortage of skilled workers. It is anticipated that there will be a significant need for more skilled workers over the next 3 – 5 years.

Further, there was some difficulty with the interprovincial migration of skilled and non-skilled workers.

The consensus around the table is that the LMO needs to be improved. Suggestions include:

·         A community by community approach rather than a national approach,

·         The program should be relevant to communities, regions, and businesses,

·         Relevant questions,

·         The history of an employer should be relevant when consideration is given to an application,

·         The same person should be assigned to an application or a community,

 There are also a couple of other points I would like to raise with Minister Kenney:

·         Policy changes to Employment Insurance to allow greater labour mobility across Canada,

·         Continued work allowing skilled workers to migrate across Canada with their provincial credentials,

·         Housing is a significant problem and the Ministry can do more to help communities experiencing housing shortages.

 If you have any thoughts or suggestions please email me.

Mayoral Report December 2013 - January 2014

Date	Activity	Purpose/Outcome	Follow Up	Policy Number
Dec 13	Mayor’s Hours	·      Met with residents	·      Brought concerns to Admin/Council	·      GP.2.1; GP.7
Dec 13	MLA Bill Boyd	·      Represent  concerns & knowledge sharing	·      Ongoing	·      GP.4.
Dec 13	Health Meeting	·      Facilitate meeting	·      Ongoing	·      GP.4.
Dec 13	RM Kindersley Xmas Party	·      Celebration		·      GP.4., GP.7.
Dec 14	Town of Kindersley Xmas Party	·      Celebration		·      GP.7.
Dec 16	Mayor’s Hours	·      Met with residents	·      Brought concerns to Admin/Council	·      GP.2.1; GP.7
Dec 16	JAMAC	·      Media interview	·      Ongoing	·      GP.4.
Dec 16	Council Meeting	·      Public Meeting	·      Refer to minutes	·      GP.0., GP.1.
Dec 17	JAMAC	·      Media interview	·      ongoing	·      GP.4.
Dec 20	Mayor’s Hours	·      Met with residents	·      Brought concerns to Admin/Council	·      GP.2.1; GP.7
Dec 20	Health Meeting	·      Communication	·      Ongoing	·      GP.4.
Dec 23	Golden West: CJWW	·      Media interview	·      Ongoing	·      GP.4.
Dec 23	Golden West: Mix 104	·      Media interview	·      Ongoing	·      GP.4.
Dec 23	Mayor’s Hours	·      Met with residents	·      Brought concerns to Admin/Council	·      GP.2.1; GP.7
Dec 30	Mayor’s Hours	·      Met with residents	·      Brought concerns to Admin/Council	·      GP.2.1; GP.7
Dec 31	JAMAC	·      Media interview	·      Ongoing	·      GP.4.
Jan 6	Museum Meeting	·      Review	·      Ongoing	·      GP.6.
Jan 6	Mayor’s Hours	·      Met with residents	·      Brought concerns to Admin/Council	·      GP.2.1; GP.7
Jan 7	Health Meeting	·      Communication	·      Ongoing	·      GP.4.
Jan 8	Organizational Review Meeting	·      Review report w/consultant	·      Ongoing	GP.7.
Jan 10	Mayor’s Hours	·      Met with residents	·      Brought concerns to Admin/Council	·      GP.2.1; GP.7
Jan 11	Museum Meeting	·      Review	·      ongoing	·      GP.6.
Jan 13	Mayor’s Hours	·      Met with residents	·      Brought concerns to Admin/Council	·      GP.2.1; GP.7

Jan 14	Kindersley & District Arts Council	·      Communication	·      Ongoing	·      GP.4.
Jan 15	Golden West: Mix 104	·      Media interview	·      Ongoing	·      GP.4.
Jan 16	Stakeholder Meeting	·      Communication	·      Ongoing	·      GP .2., GP 4
Jan 16	Economic Development Meeting	·      Discuss decision making processes	·      Ongoing	·      GP.8.
Jan 17	Mayor’s Hours	·      Met with residents	·      Brought concerns to Admin/Council	·      GP.2.1; GP.7
Jan 17	Health Meeting	·      Communication	·      Ongoing	·      GP.4.
Jan 17	Council Special Meeting	·      Information sharing		·      GP.3.
Jan 20	Employment Lunch	·      Learn about employment challenges from local businesses	·      Share concerns with Minister of Employment & Social Development	·      GP.7.
Jan 20	Mayor’s Hours	·      Met with residents	·      Brought concerns to Admin/Council	·      GP.2.1; GP.7
Jan 22	MLA Bill Boyd	·      Represent  concerns & knowledge sharing	·      Ongoing	·      GP.4.
Jan 22	George Cuff	·      Prepare for Council Retreat	·      Enhance Council’s capacity	·      GP.3., GP.8.
Jan 22	WCMGC – Cut Knife	·      Urban Co-Chair	·      Ongoing	·      GP.4.
Jan 22	Mayor Ian Hamilton: North Battleford	·      Knowledge Sharing	·      Ongoing	·      GP.7., GP.8.
Jan 22	Kindersley Housing Authority	·      Communication	·      Ongoing	·      GP.4.