The City of Estevan is gearing up for its annual budget deliberations, which are set to kick off tomorrow. Over two days, city council members will meet with third-party groups and city departments to review the funding priorities and projects for the year ahead.
The deliberations will begin on Tuesday, January 7 at 1 p.m., with discussions involving third-party organizations such as the Estevan Art Gallery and Museum, and the Souris Valley Theatre. These groups will present their funding needs for the next year and beyond.
Mayor Tony Sernick explained, “So just to go through what their needs are for the next couple of years anyway, but definitely for the next year. We go through that just to meet and greet.” He noted that the council would first meet with those who receive funding, marking the beginning of the discussions.
The second day of deliberations will start at 9 a.m. on Wednesday when council members will meet with various departments within the city. “The managers come to us with their needs, whether it be electrical or pipes or that sort of fun stuff,” said Sernick. He added that the main goal of these meetings is to evaluate infrastructure needs and assess potential projects.
Sernick feels optimistic about the city’s budget for the year ahead. “So far, the budget’s looking good as far as projects that we want to do over the next four years. We’re definitely going to come with a four-year plan,” he said. He emphasized that the purpose of this extended plan is to ensure a strategic vision for the city's long-term needs while addressing ongoing issues.
While the budget is shaping up well for upcoming projects, there remains some uncertainty over the possibility of a tax increase. “Don’t know if there will be a tax increase yet, but it is a Saskatchewan Assessment Management Agency (SAMA) year, so that really throws a loop into everything,” said Sernick. SAMA is expected to play a role in determining the fiscal landscape for the year, and its impact could affect tax rates. “Especially with a new council, it’s a bit of a curveball for everyone.”
Regarding public input, Sernick clarified that parts of the budget deliberation process would be accessible to the public. “When we go through the budget deliberations with each manager, that’s public, but then our discussion that we go into, that’s private,” he explained. He mentioned that discussions related to land, legal, and labour matters would be held behind closed doors, but anything resulting from those private discussions would still need to be voted on in a public session. "Anything that comes out of closed sections has to get voted in public,” he added.
As the city prepares for this year’s budget process, Sernick remains confident about moving forward. “We’ll see over the next two days; we’ll be able to hash it out,” he said. "Things are looking good, and we can get the infrastructure programs that we need for the first year. Like I said, we're going to come up with a four-year plan and go from there.”
Estevan residents can follow the progress of the budget deliberations, which will help set the direction for the city’s future development and funding decisions.