OUTLOOK - It's been just a hair past a year since Maureen Weiterman was voted in as the newest Mayor of Outlook, having been elected in November 2020 along with the rest of Town Council, which brought in some newer faces as well.
Steering the proverbial ship has brought its own life lessons being learned along the way, but Weiterman, speaking from behind the desk at one of her 'Monday Mornings with the Mayor' that are held weekly at the town offices building, says the past year has been a positive one that seems to show that Outlook is heading in the right direction.
"From my point of view, they've been stupendous," said Maureen, touching on her first twelve months as Mayor. "When you start something new, there's always some humps and bumps in it here and there. Council is amazing to work with, and we're really lucky to have our CAO. He's able to lead us in the right direction because he has that kind of experience; he can guide us and lead us. I'm extremely happy with the response and encouragement we've gotten from the community, they've been very good to us. It's been great, and I'm excited."
Entering into the role of Mayor saw Weiterman bring her own style to the title.
"I don't really know what I expected it to be, but I've kind of forged out my own way of being the mayor," she said. "I quite enjoy it because I'm talking with lots of people. These 'Monday Mornings with the Mayor' have been a success, so we're going to continue with it. It's been great so far."
The challenges that can come with such a title were evident to Weiterman virtually from the get-go, but she credits the rest of Town Council and the people behind the scenes with coming together to try and forge their own path to ensure a bright outlook for Outlook.
"Well, there's been a steep learning curve because although I had been on Council, I never had an opportunity to be Deputy Mayor or anything like that," she said. "So, I jumped in feet-first with my eyes wide open, and there have been lots of things I've had to learn and that I continue to learn every day. We've set things up now where we've hired a Chief Administrative Officer, and he's the one who runs the organization. We're here as the decision makers at the base level, but he carries out all the day-to-day stuff. I and the rest of Council aren't tied up so much in the minutiae of things, as we're the big picture people. He does the work, and the staff does the work, and we have an amazing staff! They do all the 'heavy lifting', I'd have to say, and we're really happy with them and their hard work and commitment to the Town."
On the flip side of that coin, the benefits of Maureen's mayoral duties have seen her welcome new faces to town and catch up with those who she may not have seen in quite a while. Weiterman says she knows that serving as Outlook Mayor can bring with it these forms of perks here and there, and she's grateful for it.
"Well, I've met a whole bunch of people who I've never met before!" she laughed. "COVID really threw us five ways, but with masking and social distancing, I've been able to get more into the community and visiting with people from the hi-rise and lo-rise, and those who I may not see out on the street. Anything that I've been able to do, those are just the perks of being the Mayor and the privilege of being out there with the people, I think it's been awesome."
With last summer's major announcement regarding the $4 billion irrigation project centering on Lake Diefenbaker, which will see nearby communities grow and hopefully prosper, the town of Outlook is looking more and more like a central hub of activity when it comes to desirable services that an influx of people will need. Weiterman says the Strategic Plan recently created, soon to be available to the public for feedback, centers on the Town of Outlook's capital plan that will play out over a number of years and continue moving the riverside community toward a bountiful future.
"Of course, we are short on residential and we know that," she said. "One of the best things that we will have accomplished by year-end is our Strategic Plan. We have goals, aims, and we know where we want to go. We have a ten-year capital plan, and we have some direction now that we hope will outlive us. The Strategic Plan is going to become available to the public one more time so that they can look at it, let us know if they agree with it, and give us some input on where we think we're headed. That's one thing that I'm really excited about."
The goal behind the Strategic Plan appears to be a rather simple one on paper - to make Outlook a more desirable and centralized community that can offer any kind of service. Of course, pulling it off will take significant time and a tremendous amount of effort, but the endgame is ensuring that the town is prospering for generations to come.
"So with the Strategic Plan, we're looking at revitalizing downtown," said Maureen. "We're fully aware that we need more residential, and we have just finished the Railway Subdivision with commercial lots back there that we hope will be for sale in the new year. Our recreation committee is being revamped and we've asked for community volunteers, and we've had good response to that. By working through all those things, we CAN make Outlook more attractive."
As far as events during the past year are concerned, Weiterman said she had a ball during the Outlook & District Heritage Museum's inaugural Thanksgiving weekend event, which saw a bevy of food trucks come out and offered magic and hypnotist shows, as well as an impressive car show.
"I had a great time, and that was spearheaded through the Museum," she said. "Why not have it return next year? Bigger and better! I sincerely hope that the Museum will take that on again and that it's something we'll see again in the new year."
The Mayor knows that people are curious about the goings-on with the Civic Centre, and she's glad to be able to say that things are now progressing forward with it.
"With the Civic Centre, we kind of got stalled out," she said. "But we're hoping to have that wrapped up in the new year. I know that we have some bookings already, so people are looking forward to having that done. I know that we're looking forward to it, too."
One of the things that moved Weiterman was seeing the near-completion of the Veterans Memorial Park, which held a small, unofficial dedication service in October. What groups like the Outlook branch of the Royal Canadian Legion are doing to honour Canada's Veterans is astounding, she says.
"The people who have stood up and done what they felt they had to do in regards to our Veterans, we can't do enough for them," said Maureen. "We are just blessed that we were born in Saskatchewan and in Canada. Anything we can do to support the Legion is great. John McPhail, the President of the Outlook Legion Branch #262, he deserves all of the praise for getting all of us on the same bus and headed in the same direction. I know we had a small dedication service in the fall, but we're going to have a large grand opening. We want to make it a big bang celebration. All of their hard work has paid off, and I think it's beautiful!"
As for what residents can expect in the new year, Mayor Weiterman says there are a number of things on the immediate horizon that Council is looking at and she expects the public to stay informed and to have a say in what goes on in their community.
"We're trying to keep people all up to date on what's going on," she said. "I think it's important that everybody has their say, and so I hope people see during our Facebook council meetings that I try to encourage those who maybe aren't as vocal as others to have a chance to speak. I was excited to be involved in the announcement of the ICIP grant (Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program); that work was started by the previous Council and we're all very grateful to them for getting things going on that. We're going to be starting on the outfalls in the riverbank, and just carrying on trying to improve things. With these Monday mornings with the Mayor, I want people to come and tell me what they're thinking and what's on their mind because it's important."
