City council approved a request for the subdivision of the Souris Valley property before it is sold to the South Central Health District for their Tatagwa View long-term health facility.

The health district and Elgin Street residents, meanwhile, had a public airing of their opposing views on CBC Radio on Tuesday morning, and both sides said they will continue on their respective efforts.

The request for subdividing the 31.06-acre parcel of land came from the owner of the Souris Valley grounds, Saskatchewan Property Management Corporation (SPMC), and was unanimously supported by council at their meeting on Monday night.

They approved a recommendation from development officer Dick Owens, who asked for the subdivision of the property to be approved, and for the application of the acreage surcharge as a condition of approval.

Council also agreed that the city should enter a development agreement with SCHD to provide for an environmental and municipal reserve dedication, and to set standards for flood elevation, flood protection and ensuring the future integrity of the water course.

The city is to also enter into an agreement with SPMC to ensure the integrity of the balance of the water course from the border of the subdivision to the Souris River.

City commissioner Bob Smith explained the environment and municipal reserve dedication is asked for in any large development, where a part of the land has to be set aside for green space, for park or playground development.

On the acreage surcharge, which Mayor Don Schlosser said is worth $344,000, the mayor suggested this surcharge be forgiven as the city's contribution to the Tatagwa View project.

Coun. Ray Hamm said this would be worth considering, but he wants to know first what other expenses from the project the SCHD might ask the city to cover or to forgive before giving approval to this suggestion.

The following morning, Elgin Street spokesman Shawn McGrath and SCHD CEO Lee Spencer gave their views on the Tatagwa View project on the CBC.

McGrath said he stated the group's case for protecting the wildlife and natural beauty of Souris Valley, and Spencer noted the health district has held a number of public meetings about the project already before any of these objections were raised.

The petition being collected in support of the Elgin Street residents is still out in the community, McGrath said in an interview, with approximately 380 names collected so far. Copies of a letter outlining their objections, along with the petition, will be sent to the health minister, SPMC and Sask Water.

"We had considered sending it to the health district, but I don't think they're too concerned about popular disapproval," said McGrath.

Told about city council's approval of the subdivision request, McGrath commented, "We felt they had taken that stance from the beginning. They haven't represented our interests at all."

He said there are parts of the Environment Protection Act they will be using in their submissions to the government, and if all avenues fail to stop the project, they will bring in legal action. "We don't want to do that unless the democratic efforts fail us. I wish we could come to a resolution," said McGrath.

Commenting on Spencer's point that the SCHD has held numerous public meetings, McGrath said, "We understand that, and we may have failed in our civic duty to pay attention to that, but we don't intend to do that again."

For his part, CEO Spencer said he isn't too worried about the impact of the petition, and noted he wasn't given the opportunity to respond to it on the CBC program.

"They might have 400 signatures, but there are 10,000 people in Weyburn. City council supports it, most of the service clubs and the public supports it. If we were to get 401 signatures, where would that leave them? It's easy to get people to sign petitions, but it's not so easy for seniors to have a voice; and what about the other 9,600?," asked Spencer.

If such a development was going to go into his back yard, he would have concerns about it at first like the Elgin Street residents do, he said, "but when you get your questions answered, you should leave it alone. However, we will continue to work with them."

City council will hold a series of budget review meetings in January that will be open to the public, for the first time ever.

The budget review meetings will be held on three successive Wednesdays in the council chambers, on Jan. 2, 9 and 16, starting at 6 p.m. each night.

Mayor Schlosser said council wants the public to be able to see where the budget figures are coming from, as the numbers will be in the public eye over the course of the three meetings.

A preliminary draft of the budget has been drawn up by city treasurer Paul Shupe, who said the expenditures are about 12 to 12.5 per cent over revenues at this point, or about $1 million that either has to be cut, or found by extra revenues.

While the amount sounds like a lot, it isn't that unusual, said Coun. Mike Pickering, noting the budget process has started out that way every year he has been on council. One of the factors this year is a three-per-cent pay raise for all city employees, said the mayor, which will add about $150,000 to the budget for 2002. The next regular council meeting will be held on Monday, Jan. 14.

One of the items going to the budget review is a request from the Outdoor Rink Association at Jubilee Park, who asked the city for a contribution of $10,000 towards the cost of paving the outdoor rink.

The outdoor rink was built in 1999 by volunteers and donated materials, with a total cost of $9,700 and 1,050 volunteer hours altogether, said a letter from the rink association.

The group obtained a quote from ASL Paving to pave the 200-ft. by 85-ft. rink, and the cost would be just under $38,000. They will be approaching businesses, service groups and individuals for contributions to this cost, and a sign will be put up at the outdoor rink listing all the contributors.

The benefits of paving would include making the facility available for use year-round, including such uses as ball or roller hockey, basketball, arena soccer and so on. The association also hopes to raise enough to pave the small secondary ice surface used as a "learn-to-skate" area next to the outdoor rink, which would cost roughly $3,000, council was told. "It's a project that has been with the recreation department and leisure services for a number of years. I think council should look seriously at this, but it should be done during budget deliberations," said Coun. Ray Hamm.

Coun. Bill Rudachyk added the suggestion that the request go to the Leisure Services Commission first for their input before it's brought back for a council decision, which council agreed to do.

· Council approved the write-off of 39 utility accounts for 2001, worth a total of $3,485. The list is mostly for residential services along with two businesses. Mayor Schlosser said any of the accounts over $100 are sent to a collection agency; in any event, those named would have to pay the outstanding amount plus a hook-up fee if they reapplied to the city to have water service.

· Council approved a request to reimburse Mayor Schlosser for the cost of his personal cell phone, which he uses for city business. The basic cost is $40, plus additional charges for the use of the phone, which vary from month to month.