The new street signs in the downtown Business Improvement District area were installed last week. Hats off to Westcrete the local company hired to install them. They, along with Brockman Enterprises, are the company that has also done much of the sidewalk replacement over the past years, downtown at City Hall and over at the Uniplex. They also did the installation of the wheel chair sidewalk ramps that have been done all over the city.
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The Business Improvement District (BID) was established a few years ago, after west end retail development started to pull businesses from downtown. This is a partnership funded by the Businesses and the City, it is designed to make the downtown area more attractive to new businesses and customers. The decorative street signs that are going up are another part of the improvement by the BID. The old signs that have life left in them, will be put back into inventory for use elsewhere. This is a shining example of replacing infrastructure while improving our downtown.

The $4.3 million Water Reservoir Project being built was funded by a 1/3 Federal Government, 1/3 Provincial Government and the City covered the last third. This is the way I prefer projects be done. Humboldt's portion of these types of projects should be covered by a specific levy to pay for those projects and then go away after completion. I prefer special levies rather then raising taxes because they are earmarked for a project and transparent, not hidden anywhere. The wate...r reservoir project was undertaken to keep a longer supply of safe, treated water on hand, this will reduce the number of boil water advisories as well as prepare us for future growth.


Boil water advisories are usually caused by a pressure breach or power outage in Sask Water's supply line from Wakaw to Humboldt and are out of our control. The advisories are lifted only when the test samples are cleared by the provincial lab. The example of the water reservoir project can be applied to other future projects like the lagoon upgrades to increase capacity and address odor issues and recreational facilities etc. etc.


While we are talking about water I should address the water price you and I pay. A reliable source of clean water is always a top priority. In the 90's Humboldt's water supply was deemed inadequate for future growth and the council of the day signed on to the regional pipeline system. Sask Water is a crown corporation like Sask Power and they set the rates we pay. Over the years they have been increasing the rates about 4% per year to cover the costs of operations, infrastructure and to pay off the original capital costs. The rates will temporarily increase even more to pay for the power generating system and other upgrades they are installing. Over the years mayor, council and management continually lobbied Sask Water on behalf of taxpayers to be more reasonable with their increases. We have just signed a new agreement that I think is more favourable to the city and surrounding towns and will help address the boil water advisories.


To end on a bright note, City staff have been working diligently to bring under control the amount of water lost through leaky underground pipes. In 2015 we lost around $350,000 worth of water, that was a direct cost to taxpayers! The latest numbers I have available show that in September of this year the amount of water we purchased from Sask Water and the amount consumed by residents were nearly equal. Fingers crossed, this money will be better spent on improving infrastructure or put back into taxpayer's pockets instead of running down the drain.

This is Seamus, he and his buddies are avid users of the Humboldt Skateboard Park. A few weeks ago when all of the heavy equipment was at Centennial Park, he asked me if they were going to tear out the Skate Park because he heard that at school. I said no, what he heard wasn't true. He then told me about a few improvements they thought it needed, mainly putting a bit of a cement pad on the top so they didn't have to land in the dirt. I told him, when it was originally built, ...the youth had asked for it, fundraising was done and the City of Humboldt partnered to get it built. Seamus then replied, they could get a scooter donated and have a raffle to help out with the improvements ... another discussion for the new council.

This facility is the perfect example of how City Council tries to form partnerships to get recreational facilities built. The Skate Park was built in 2009, while I was Chair of the Leisure Services Committee. Money was donated by John and Carollynn Daschner and a number of community groups. The city contributed funds as well and organized the tendering and construction. A company was hired to build it and local kids, including my two sons, worked with them to design it. Seven years later it is being used by skateboarders, BMX bikers and more recently by scooters. Some lighting was salvaged from the old outdoor pool to extend the useful hours.

This partnership method was also used for the JCI Spray Park, the Humboldt and District Art Gallery (combined with government grants) and can be used in future cultural and recreational projects large and small.
Feel free to share this awesome story and buy a ticket when they have their raffle!!

Our community is very proud of some significant accomplishments over the past several years as a result of the partnerships and involvement of community members, organizations and our business community.…
              
Humboldt and District Art Gallery - Repurposing the old Merchant’s Bank building in the heart of downtown Humboldt with support from Federal and Provincial grant programs; Museum Foundation, Corporate and private donations and the City of Humboldt.
 
Humboldt Community Gathering Place - transformation of the Humboldt Seniors Centre to a community centre to continue support  for our Seniors but also to involve and serve the needs of all community members, groups and organizations.  What a great partnership with City activities, School Division programs, Seniors Club activities,  Museum Board activities and community organizations like BBBS , the Soup Kitchen, In Motion and many others.

Glenn Hall Park - our first class Sports field complex – including two regulation soccer fields, the football field, the Track and field facilities, an electric  score clock legacy of the 2003 winter games committee, new storage and sound booth provided by HCI, Corporate Donations and PAMI.  The first irrigated sports fields in Humboldt.

Glenn Hall Monument – we are very proud of our hometown legend Glenn Hall and so through the great work of the Sports Hall of Fame committee, we were pleased to name Highway Five through Humboldt Glenn Hall Drive and install this attractive and informative display that highlights Glenn’s career

Humboldt and District Hospital – the City of Humboldt played an important lead role in partnership with the Humboldt and District Hospital Foundation and over 20 other municipal partners in our region. Together we raised the 35% share of the new hospital construction costs and the 2.5 million required for Furnishings and Equipment.

Sisters of St. Elizabeth - property developments – the city developed an agreement with the Sisters to purchase their property.  Two wonderful aspects to that agreement are the commitment to maintain the park and historic cemetery on the property.  We named the park St. Elizabeth Park in honor of the Sisters. The old hospital site portion was sold to a private developer who has committed to build four condos on the property and name each after the original Elizabethan nuns who came to our region over 100 years ago.  The planning to repurpose the old convent into Seniors Assisted Living Rental is moving forward and is an exciting addition to the Seniors Housing options available in our community.

Royal Bank Cup National Junior A Hockey Tournament  - 2012 Humboldt was proud to host this national event….. Our bid proposal was a partnership between the City, The Humboldt Broncos, Humboldt Minor Hockey and our Chamber of Commerce.  After being awarded the Tournament this partnership grew to include a number of other groups and organizations.  The spotlight was on Humboldt and we welcomed teams and family and visitors from across the country.

This Post is Authorized by Rob Muench #muench4mayor

Congratulations to Crystal Young the new Executive Director of the Humboldt & District Chamber of Commerce. It was nice chatting with her this morning, and if elected I look forward to working with Crystal in her new role. I hope to continue the good working relationship the City of Humboldt and the Chamber have had over the years. As Mayor I will work with the Chamber and the Downtown BID to facilitate the attraction of new retail business to our city and help existing businesses expand. This will fill the gaps in our current retail offering and strengthen Humboldt's position as a retail hub while increasing the tax base.
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This Post is Authorized by Rob Muench #muench4mayor

http://www.discoverhumboldt.com/com-commedia-elements/local/11601-chamber-hires-new-executive-director
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