Members of City Council convened for their regular bi-weekly meeting on Monday night. There were several items on the agenda, among them a couple of subdivision proposals, one of which created a slight bit of division between the usually unanimous Councillors.

"The RM of Estevan is proposing an industrial subdivision adjoining the bypass. It has been our agreement in the past that we would not agree to anything less than five acres as far as an industrial development goes, and now that they are planning for less than five acres, we simply can't agree with that," explained Mayor Roy Ludwig.

While some Councillors were willing to table the motion, others struck it down. As a result, the application was denied until the RM and Council are able to sit down and hash it out.

"I think we're optimistic that, through discussion, we can resolve it."

Another item that made it's way through the chamber was the third reading of the proposed Contractor Performance Deposit bylaw.

While nothing has been settled yet regarding dealing with the provincial budget, Councillor Greg Hoffart made note of the fact that they have been working hard to come up with a solution to dealing with the effects. He said that property tax increases are inevitable, and pretty much out of Council's control.

"We're very fortunate in that our City Manager (Jeff Ward) has a background as a chartered accountant, so when it comes to numbers, he's a huge help." stated Mayor Ludwig.

"We're looking at all areas, cutting back where we can and where it makes sense, but we want to continue with services and most of the improvements that are needed. It's a tough walk that we are walking, and we want to take our time to make sure that our bases are covered. It will be a blend of cutting back in some areas on the capital and operational side, and unfortunately we will be seeing job losses."

He noted however, that some of the main projects already approved and set to go will not be affected. These include the King Street refurbishment and the pipeline between Rafferty Dam and the Water Treatment Plant. The joint federal, provincial, and municipal Residual Management project, already tendered, will move forward untouched as well.

It wasn't all somber and serious discussion, however, as some presentations included the annual Mayor's Poetry challenge, where city mayors have children selected by the local library stand up and present their poems before council.

"They were great. We love to have the kids. They come once a year, and every single one of them was fantastic. We appreciate the parents and teachers, because we know the work that goes into that," Ludwig expressed.

"It was very entertaining. They did a fabulous job."