ESTEVAN - Estevan city council tackled a number of issues Monday night during its first official meeting since the Nov. 13 civic election.
Among the items were two reports related to the election, which city clerk Judy Pilloud said had an average turnout with 2,695 ballots cast.
The advanced polls on Oct. 29 and 30 at city hall had approximately 223 voters, and an advanced drive-thru poll was held Nov. 2 at the Estevan Fire Rescue Service building.
A mail-in ballot option was offered as well. Pilloud said it was "under-utilized" in the 2024 election, and it is very time-consuming for the election workers, but Pilloud believes it gives greater flexibility for voters.
The main polling station on election day was at the Estevan Church of God, and Pilloud said it continues to be well-received.
Pilloud also recommended that the city continue to rent electronic vote-counting equipment; the system, which has been in use since the 2014 byelection, cuts down on manpower required at each polling station and the time spent counting ballots.
"There were concerns brought forward on legal entities and the qualifications to vote," Pilloud said. In the 2028 election, this needs to be addressed with more clarification from the province and a revamp to our election website under eligibility to vote. There needs to be better resources and understanding of these requirements for voters."
Also, some residents were confused about which election they were voting for due to the provincial election that occurred 16 days earlier. Some thought they had already voted.
"With the provincial and municipal elections being so close together, this concern should be brought to the province as information," Pilloud said.
There was also a report on the plebiscite on whether people would support the construction of a third indoor ice facility in Estevan; nearly 60 per cent of the 2,584 ballots cast voted no. Coun. Shelly Veroba noted it was non-binding; people have since approached her on whether it was a definite no.
"I am hearing that there is a lot of groups that want to come forward with a lot of different ideas, and I think that door is still open to still have those discussions," said Veroba.
She hopes someone will come forward with good ideas for funding for the future.
Mayor Tony Sernick added things that get built in Estevan often start with one person and turn into a group of people who make it happen.
Council also established the meeting schedule for 2025. There will be two regular meetings each month, with the exception of July and August, when council will meet just once. The first meetings of the year will be for budget deliberations on Jan. 7 at 1:30 p.m. and the following day at 9 a.m., and the first regular meeting of next year will be Jan. 13.
Council members were sworn in at a special meeting on Friday afternoon. Estevan Provincial Court Judge Mitch Miller administered the oath of office to the seven members.
