WEYBURN - Two more Weyburn city councillors have decided they will be seeking another term, Laura Morrissette, who is finishing her second term, and Ryan Janke, just finishing his first term.
Fellow councillor Mel Van Betuw has indicated he will not run for another term, and councillor Jeff Richards has indicated he will be running for the mayor’s chair. Other members of council have not yet declared if they are running.
The municipal election will be held on Nov. 13, and nominations will open on Sept. 25, to close on Oct. 9, a month prior to voting day.
For Morrissette, this second term had some differences from the first time she was on council, as her two daughters were one and four when she first got on in 2012.
She was not re-elected when she ran again in 2016, but was successful in getting a second term when she ran in 2020.
She had a very steep learning curve in that first term, but now feels as she ends her second term she will be able to help out any new councillors who are elected this fall.
Morrissette currently sits on a number of committees, including the Weyburn Library board and Southeast Regional Library, along with Leisure Services, Tourism and the Weyburn Care-A-Van Society.
“I’m loving my library board. The previous board set such a great framework,” she said, noting the community support for the library and its programs and events has been “amazing”, such as the two recent book sales, held each fall and spring.
On council itself, she noted the group has been working on a strategic plan, and she loves the mission statement and vision that have now been put up on the walls of the council chambers.
“It was a collaborative effort with council and staff,” said Morrissette, noting the plan is a forward-thinking initiative that is setting the direction for the City to follow.
The plans include taking a look at the city’s facilities, such as the state of the roofs and equipment, so they can do long-term planning and not require putting on a 10-per-cent tax increase if something big comes up.
“I always mention we’re taxpayers as well. We have to make sure we can meet all of the needs we’re committed to,” she said, adding they don’t want to see taxpayers need to decide between paying their tax bill or putting food on the table.
The revitalization of the city is also an important issue for her that she wants to be able to continue working on if she is re-elected. This includes attracting new businesses to the city as well as helping the businesses that are here.
“We want to make sure businesses come here, and want to stay,” she said.
Meantime, she is looking forward to seeing new blood on council if she is elected to another term and help them out, and noted, “I remember when I was the newbie. It was great to have all the other councillors there to help me.”
Finishing up his first term on council, Janke said there certainly is a steep learning curve at the start, but he encourages anyone who has a desire to serve on council to put forward their names on the ballot.
“There’s a lot to learn, but there’s a lot of support, and a lot of smart people at City Hall,” he said.
Janke said he’s proud of the work that council has been able to do, including the infrastructure work they’ve been able to do over the summer, and feels it’s important council continue to make long-term plans around infrastructure needs.
“I see a lot of opportunities for the City of Weyburn to foster economic development,” he said, noting they have a partnership with the RM of Weyburn on development and on infrastructure needs.
In regard to the mall property, he noted while it’s not owned by the city, he thinks there must be something the city can do to help the owners, such as incentives through the Weyburn Builds program, and going on from that, downtown revitalization is an important issue as well.
“It’s an exciting time for downtown Weyburn,” said Janke.
In regards to the city budgets, he noted that city staff have worked hard to find efficiencies and stretch dollars as much as possible.
“I think Weyburn taxes compare to most of the province quite competitively,” he said, adding that striking a balance in a budget is one of the most difficult tasks council has had to do, in making sure city services and facilities have what they need, and on the other hand that there isn’t a large burden to city taxpayers.
