City of North Battleford Mayor Kelli Hawtin is optimistic for 2025 and pleased with the progress the city has made in the past year.
The city will take on a number of projects this year that will have a positive impact to the community.
In an email to Â鶹ÊÓƵ, Hawtin outlined a number of priorities the city has lined up for 2025.
- January of 2025 will start with establishing the budget, which will determine the specific projects for the year.
- Anticipated Underground Pipe and Asphalt Rehabilitation (UPAR) work will continue with the replacement of underground pipe, asphalt and sidewalks.
- Plans to replace or renovate the aging Access Communications Centre will be established following completion of the Feasibility Study. The presentation of the Feasibility Study is expected to come to city council in early 2025.
- Council will review the current Strategic Plan and create the new 2025-2029 Strategic Plan, which will set the overarching goals for the next four years.
- Zoning Bylaw and the Official Community Plan revisions are expected as "we work to promote North Battleford as an optimal location for business growth and expansion," Hawtin said.
In a media release, the City of North Battleford detailed a number of important projects it undertook in 2024 that it was proud of.
The city successfully advocated for the elimination of ranking communities by Crime Severity Index weights, following a western Canadian conference that included attendance from 11 various communities, First Nations, law enforcement, and the federal government - Statistics Canada, to try to improve the city's overall image relating to Community Safety.
In another development, the city took part in a historic signing with Sweetgrass First Nation to complete an Urban Reserve Services Agreement in the city.
The city also participated in the unveiling of the Annie Peyachew statue at Central Park in downtown North Battleford. Peyachew was one of the hundreds of Indigenous youth who attended Battleford Industrial School.
The city is currently planning for its 2025 budget deliberation meetings.
They are coming a little later this year due to the impact from the municipal elections in 2024.
“We are anticipating budget to be approved by Jan. 23, which will allow administration to get right to work on tendering capital and construction projects for the year," Hawtin stated. "We are expecting that our departments are prepared, and we are not anticipating any delays due to budget being pushed back by approximately one month.”
“The city’s fiscal year is January - December, but mill rates are not typically set until May, which gives us some time flexibility," she added. "The main reason we complete our budget in December on a typical year is to allow administration to proceed early in the year on capital and construction tenders, which we do not expect to be delayed in 2025 due to budget timing. We also set our utility rates for the beginning of January, which is why the utility budget was passed prior to the election to avoid any delay in utility rates and billing.”
