Through the careful stewardship of the City’s finances and a lot of hard work the City in the preliminary 2020 year end financials shows they were able to generate a small surplus.
Winning some long standing property tax appeals with some dating back to 2017 also brought in some much needed funds
Read MoreThe predicted negative impact of changing the formula for distributing the net proceeds of photo radar fines on the City’s bottom line has become reality two years later.
Read MoreWhat appeared to be an easy motion to transfer the ownership and financial responsibilities of the two geo-thermal wells that supply Temple Gardens Mineral Spa ended up getting split into two motions when a councillor questioned a refund being used to finance it.
Read MoreDespite the trend of growing property taxes in arrears Council was told perspective was needed in the actual 2020 increase due to the pandemic - plus there was a bit of a silver lining for those behind on their taxes and the City.
Read MoreCouncil unanimously approved a motion to have Administration prepare a report about the costs to remove the snow piled along Priority 1 and Priority 2 streets for discussion at next year’s budget deliberations.
Another potential solution discussed to improve snow clearing was to potentially test a different system on an area of Snow Route where residents would remove their vehicles from the streets and then the plow unobstructed without lifting the gate at driveways. Later residents would have to shovel their driveways out as done in Toronto and Montreal.
Read MoreDespite having its detractors on Council a new committee to coordinate and lead the efforts for a cleaner Moose Jaw and subsequent community pride has been established.
Read MoreA surprise fourth quarter market rally has led to the City earning millions in investment returns on their $100 million reserve funds.
Read MoreCouncil’s approval to spend just over $54,000 on a study into the geo-thermal potential for the new industrial park is an investment in the future of a world moving away from oil, Mayor Tolmie says
Read MoreCouncil approved over $100,000 be spent to finish upgrades and repairs at two City facilities.
One of the projects will see procedural changes within a City department after work proceeded without Council funding approval.
Read MoreA long time Moose Jaw business received an apology and a more equitable landfill disposal fee after Council discovered they had not been provided with all of the pertinent information to make a proper decision.
Read MoreTypifying print media as ancient and outdated Councillor Dawn Luhining has asked for a review of how the City spends its advertising dollars.
Read MoreMayor Fraser Tolmie answered questions from MJ Independent in a post Council media scrum about the impact of the loss of recreational opportunities due to COVID - 19 restrictions and what the City is doing about it.
Read More“Currently our rates per hour per player have tripled…At this time it is unsustainable,” Mike Armstrong, president of the Moose Jaw Soccer Association (MJSA) told Council in an attempt to get a temporary rate reduction at the Yara Centre. A request that was unanimously denied.
Read MoreTraditionally at the first Council meeting of the year the Mayor stands up and delivers the annual State Of The City Speech.
The speech reflect on the past, speaks of the present and points the way to what the Mayor sees for the City’s future. The speech often includes future initiatives, plans and policies to the lead the City on its journey.
We have have provided here the 2021 State Of The City Address by Mayor Fraser Tolmie, unedited in its entirety. We encourage our readers to give it a read.
Read MoreSchool and playground zones are designed for children and so the students at Sask Polytechnic won’t be getting them around their campus.
Read MoreAfter voting just under two weeks ago to discontinue the regular Transit service on Saturdays effective February 1st Council decided to use their $20,000 travel budget to extend the service until May 1st.
Additionally Council will survey residents and businesses about the service and how to improve it and increase the ridership to make it less costly to subsidize. Such moves may mean the service is maintained in some form on Saturdays.
Read MoreIn what looked like it could be a disaster for the City’s invested reserve funds a market reversal has the City earning higher than targeted earnings in 2020 - some of the earnings are now earmarked to help fund the 2021 Budget.
Read MoreA detailed update on the future plans to upgrade and repair the 4th Avenue Bridge was delivered to Council.
The question remains though where will Council find the money?
Read MoreA seemingly innocent policy change years ago on the ownership of the service connections to property owners was used partially as a reason to eliminate a long running program to subsidize the replacement of no corrode service connections.
Read MoreIt has been a highly publicized issue becoming almost a serialized novel in the Moose Jaw Express, created animosity and set off some tempers, but it now seems a deal is at hand in repairing the 7th Avenue SW Bridge.
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