BATTLEFORD – Town of Battleford's current council members recalled some projects they were most proud to work on in their four-year term at Monday's meeting.
While most of the councillors are seeking re-election, this meeting marked the last meeting of the current council's term.
Coun. Kevin Russell cited the rehabilitation of the old truss bridges connecting to Finlayson Island as a big project the town was glad to get done. The work enabled the walking bridge to open again at the north span.
Russell added that the lagoon upgrade was also a significant project for the town.
Coun. Shelley Boutin-Gervais mentioned the addition of the town's new Pump Track was also a highlight.
"It was a huge success for us," she said.
Mayor Ames Leslie was pleased with all of council's efforts over the past four years.
"You can walk out with heads high and proud of what you've contributed to the community," he said.
Leslie noted with COVID-19 impacting the community and the world, it was a harder term for council to get through.
He added that the current council has also done a lot of work in the past term advancing inclusivity in the community.
"[It was] the first time ever we had a teepee built on the lawn of Town Hall," he said. "We hosted a mini powwow dance on main street, and we had Indigenous drums drumming in our community. {Also] we've had some inclusion with the Taste of Culture. We've definitely gone a long ways to bridge that gap of making everybody feel they are part of our community. We definitely have some work to do, but I'm proud of the direction this council has given to our management and staff to become more inclusive as a community."
Leslie, who has completed three terms on council, was acclaimed in the 2024 election, so he is looking forward to the next term for council.
He said the town could benefit from refocusing and reinventing itself as "the historic town of Battleford" by highlighting some of its historical features, such as the Fred Light Museum, the Baseball Hall of Fame, the Gardiner Presbyterian Church, and the old St. Vital Church.
"We have all these unique historical infrastructures in our community that I think we can do a better job of promoting and convincing people to come visit our community."
The mayor also hopes for the next council and administration to pivot on working more on economic development.
"We are the second or third largest town in the province, with the third lowest taxation rate," he said. "We need to become better at making the world know that, and making western Canada know that, to draw people to come here both for residence and a commercial and industrial sector. We tout some of the best services with the lowest taxation. There are a lot of corporations we need to tap on the shoulder and say: 'Consider us.'"
Leslie also wants to make more improvements to the aging infrastructure in the town over the next term.
"Our streets aren't bad, but they're not perfect, and I'd like to see where we can go in the next four years," he said.
