Category Archives: Government

Town imposed environmental fees going up in 2014

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The Town of Unity passed a new bylaw Jan. 28, increasing the environmental levy fees for residents and businesses.

Town of UnityResidents will see a modest increase of $1 per month, paying $18 every three months, up from $15 per quarter.

The minimum businesses will pay is also $18 per quarter, but businesses deemed to be medium or high use recyclers will see significant increases. To qualify for theminimum fee of $18 per quarter levy, businesses need to have only one to two bags of recyclables per week.

Businessesw ith three to four bags of recyclables a week fall into the medium category and will be charged $126 per quarter. Five or more bags of recyclables per week puts a business into the high category. These businesses will pay $270 per quarter, or over $1,000 annually.

All businesses should have received a letter from the Town of Unity advising them of the changes and of their category. Business owners or managers who disagree with the category decided by the town can appeal.

An appeal form was included with the letters sent to businesses. To make an appeal, the business must fill out the form and give facts and reasons for their request to be in a lower category than the one assigned by the town. Appeal forms must be returned to the town office before March 3.

Businesses who have their own contracts with recyclers will still have to pay the minimum charge of $18 per quarter.

For now, the town will continue to use the community Loraas bins as its recycling method. Administrator Aileen Garrett said that could still change and a town owned recycling building in the future has still not been ruled out.

Should the new environmental fees create a profit for the town, Garrett said the money would be transferred to a reserve for the future. She noted, however, “if our recycling program is abused, additional costs are incurred as the town is penalized.”

Not only does Loraas charge a penalty if bins are contaminated with non-recyclables, but when garbage is left at the bin site, town employees have to be paid and have to take time from their regular duties to clean it up.

Highway drivers reminded to watch for winter work zones

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Saskatchewan HighwaysWhile highway construction is usually associated with the warm summer months, drivers should be aware certain types of work can take place year-round.

“We may be in the middle of winter, but crews are still out there working on bridges and installing culverts,” Highways and Infrastructure Minister Don McMorris said.  “Remember that no matter the season, you must always slow to 60 km/hr when you see the black and white speed signs.”

While cold temperatures present challenges, certain aspects of construction can benefit from wintry weather.  For example, cranes can be placed on frozen waterways and used to hoist beams into place during bridge construction.

Bridge projects currently underway include work on Highway 14 near Kinley, on Highway 10 south of Yorkton and on Highway 26 south of St. Walburg.  These are just a few examples of the work currently taking place, and motorists are reminded to keep an eye out for work zones when they travel.

To find general information about work zones in Saskatchewan, please visitwww.saskatchewan.ca/live/transportation/work-zones.

Travel information about construction, emergency road closures, the status of ferries and barges and other road activities is always available on the Highway Hotline atwww.saskatchewan.ca/live/transportation/highway-hotline.  It’s also available by calling 306-787-7623 in Regina, 306-933-8333 in Saskatoon, the SaskTel cellular network at *ROAD, toll-free across Canada at 1-888-335-7623 and via the Highway Hotline mobile website athttp://hotline.gov.sk.ca/sk/map/mobile.

Most popular baby names in Saskatchewan in 2013

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For the fourth year in a row, Liam was the most popular name for baby boys born in Saskatchewan.  Emma has been the most popular girls’ name for the last five years.

The second most popular names were Carter and Sophia, which moved up several spots from 2012.

There were 92 baby boys named Liam in 2013, followed by Carter, Noah, Lucas and Ethan.  Ethan held the honour as most popular boy’s name for eight years, from 2001 to 2009.

There were 80 baby girls named Emma, followed by Sophia, Emily, Olivia and Lily.  Olivia and Emily remained among the top five popular names from 2012.  Lily moved up from the sixth spot.

To date there are 15,222 live births registered in Saskatchewan in 2013, which is an increase from 15,046 in 2012.  These numbers do not include Saskatchewan mothers who gave birth outside of the province.

Top 20 Baby Boy Names (by count): Liam (92), Carter (69), Noah (65), Lucas (65), Ethan (60), Jacob (55), Mason (54), William (52), Owen (52), Jace (50), Alexander (49), Jaxon (49), Bentley (47), Benjamin (45), Jase (45), Logan (44), Hudson (43), Ryder (42), Hunter (42), Samuel (40).

Top 20 Baby Girl Names (by count): Emma (80), Sophia (72), Emily (64), Olivia (64), Lily (53), Ava (52), Brooklyn (45), Zoey (43), Brielle (40), Avery (38), Grace (38), Hannah (38), Mia (37), Hailey (37), Isabella (37), Aubrey (33), Ella (33), Abigail (33), Sadie (32), Chloe (30).

For more information on the most popular baby names and to see the list of popular names from previous years, visit the eHealth Saskatchewan website at www.ehealthsask.ca/vitalstats/births/BabyNames/Pages/default.aspx.

 

Training programs for “the hired hand”

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NEW AGRICULTURAL OPERATOR PROGRAM LAUNCHED IN SASKATCHEWAN

Hands-on training to help address farm labour challenges

The Agricultural Operator Program is a module-based program offering practical, hands-on training to individuals interested in working on Saskatchewan farms. Students and employers will have the flexibility to choose the entire program or specific modules relevant to their farms.

The first three modules will be seeding, spraying and scouting, and harvest to be delivered at Parkland Regional College in Yorkton. Additional modules will be developed for the livestock industry including haying, beef cattle reproduction and calving, and cattle husbandry and handling. Following the pilot program, the provincial government will work to expand the program to other regional colleges across Saskatchewan.

The pilot program will start with a seeding module beginning March 3 and ending April 16. The module is comprised of 36 hours of hands-on workshops and nine hours of online delivery. It will cover essential farm knowledge for seeding processes and equipment maintenance. The spraying module will be available in late May and the harvest module will be available in early July.

“We are pleased to run the pilot year of this course at our Yorkton Campus,” Parkland College President Fay Myers said. “The timing of the modules matches the critical times on the farm, so employees can take the seeding module during the time right before seeding. Then they can then put their education to use right away in the field.”

For more information on how to apply for the program, go to www.agriculture.gov.sk.ca/GrowingForward2 or www.parklandcollege.sk.ca.

When the program was announced this week, Saskatchewan Agriculture Minister Lyle Stewart said, “Producers have indicated that they need more skilled labour for their operations and this program directly responds to their needs. Farmers can send current or potential employees through the program to develop or help fine tune their skills. Additionally, general labourers without a farm background will have an opportunity to gain the experience needed to get involved in the industry.”

spring on the PrairiesThe federal and provincial governments will invest $200,000 in funding for the development and delivery of the Agricultural Operator Program pilot through Growing Forward 2.

Working toward maximum 3 month wait time for surgery

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Surgical teams across the province continue to work toward the goal of improving surgical care and reducing patient wait times to less than three months from the time surgery is planned.

Statistics to the end of November show that about 79 per cent of patients are receiving a procedure within three months thanks to the Saskatchewan Surgical Initiative, which is nearing the end of its four-year transformation effort in March 2014. There are 4,796 patients waiting more than three months for surgery – 10,555 fewer than when the Surgical Initiative began in March 2010.

“Thanks to a monumental effort by surgical teams, patient advisors and health region administrators, we have made incredible progress toward sooner, safer and smarter surgical care,” Health Minister Dustin Duncan said.

The province’s largest and busiest health regions – Saskatoon and Regina Qu’Appelle – have both faced challenges meeting surgical demand. The Saskatoon Health Region has implemented a mitigation plan to overcome increased demand for about 700 more surgeries this year; however, even with the increased effort, it will take until late 2014 to meet the target of providing all surgeries within three months.

“In a co-ordinated effort by our staff, physicians and our contracted medical facility, we are continuing to reduce the size of our surgical wait lists,” Saskatoon Health Region President and CEO Maura Davies said.

Overall, Saskatoon has been achieving the planned increased volume of surgical cases this year, but demand rose more than expected in 2013. The region’s mitigation plan to deal with the increased demand includes expanding operating room hours so an additional 465 surgeries can be performed this fiscal year and exploring ways to even out the wait lists of surgeons. The region will also work with other health regions to offer patients surgeries closer to home and will increase the number of day surgeries handled by the third-party surgical centre on contract with the Saskatoon Health Region.

Information about the Saskatchewan Surgical Initiative is available at www.sasksurgery.ca. The website also features the Specialist Directory, which empowers patients and their primary care providers to compare options for surgical care.

Provincial government launches Saskatchewan.ca

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The Government of Saskatchewan’s new website, Saskatchewan.ca, is improving access to information and services for Saskatchewan people as well as those considering visiting or moving to the province.

The previous Saskatchewan government website at gov.sk.ca was created in 2006, before tablets and smartphones were commonly used. It has since grown to more than 400,000 pages of content and its size and complexity make it hard to find information and services.

Research with Saskatchewan people found that grouping information by related topics under the headings “Live,” “Work,” “Play” and “Government” will make the new website more user friendly, as it will be organized by Saskatchewan people’s interests rather than by government ministries. This change also reflects what Saskatchewan has to offer visitors, potential investors and people considering moving to Saskatchewan.

The new website uses analytics to track and promote frequently visited pages like the Highway Hotline, saskjobs.ca or where to find day care so the most sought after information can be highlighted and kept current.

The first phase of the website project was completed between June and December 2013. The $1 million cost of the project came from existing government website and IT budgets.

Saskatchewan.ca is part of an overall program to enhance online services to citizens. The web project included planning for the new digital program, gathering citizen feedback into their wants and needs, selection and implementation of a new content management system, reviewing more than 400,000 pages of content on the current website, design for the new site including a more accessible and mobile-friendly site; build of the new website and testing of the new site.

Government will continue to transition content and services from gov.sk.ca to Saskatchewan.ca over the coming year. Both gov.sk.ca and Saskatchewan.ca will operate until the transition is complete.

Travel safely to Grey Cup festivities!

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Headlined SASKATCHEWAN HIGHWAYS TO EXPERIENCE THE RIDER NATION RUSH TO REGINA, the Government of Saskatchewan issued a press release urging motorists to drive carefully on their trek to Regina for the 101st Grey Cup game and festivities.

With the Roughriders and Tiger-Cats set to clash in the Grey Cup final and the lion’s share of fans stampeding toward Regina on Saskatchewan highways, motorists are reminded to avoid rushing and pass safely during their drive.

“The Riders’ home Grey Cup appearance is a huge cause for celebration, and drivers from within the province and across Canada will flood into Regina for the festivities,” Highways and Infrastructure Minister Don McMorris said. “However, winter conditions have arrived, so I want to remind all motorists to check the Highway Hotline and drive cautiously when they head out so it can be a good, safe week for everyone.”

For the Highway Hotline’s latest available Saskatchewan road conditions, visit hotline.gov.sk.ca or for recorded reports, phone 306-787-7623 in the Regina area, 306-933-8333 in the Saskatoon area or 1-888-335-7623 toll-free across Canada.

The Highway Hotline continues to use social media. For road closures and travel not recommended alerts on Twitter, follow @SKGovHwyHotline. General tips and other helpful information are available on Facebook at www.facebook.com/SaskatchewanHighwayHotline.

Whether you are heading to Regina or just to the neighbouring town to watch the game with friends and family, unity stories reminds you to take care out there!  And Go, Riders, go!

Gilbert Agencies – insurance, SGI licences and more

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Scott at Gilbert Agencies in Unity says it’s been “Our family taking care of other families for nearly 40 years in this community.”

Located downtown on 2nd Avenue West in Unity, Gilbert Agencies was birthed in 1976, by Scott Gilbert’s uncle, Alex. After being employed by his uncle, Scott went to a partnership share before purchasing the business outright in 2001.

Gilbert Agencies employs three people full-time with a staff combined years of service of 45. Now that’s experience you can count on!

Gilbert Agencies is a general insurance brokerage as well as an SGI motor licence issuer. Scott is a notary public and a sub-broker for Desjardins Financial Investments. He has his CAIB (Canadian Accredited Insurance Broker) designation.

Gilbert Agencies is committed to helping people solve and complete their insurance needs. Their goal is satisfied customers and that requires providing top-notch service, price and product variety, which they do.

Gilbert Agencies, Unity

Scott loves to meet different people and embraces the different personalities he’s encountered through business, recreation and volunteerism.

One thing he loves about living in and doing business in Unity is the “I’ve got your back” philosophy. This is the same way insurance agencies want their customers to feel. It’s easy to relay that to customers in a community that regularly exhibits these qualities in efforts to help friends and neighbours.

Scott was born and raised in Unity. He’s proud of the community and proud to be part of it. He was happy to return home to start his career and raise his family.

You can always find Scott volunteering somewhere as he believes in hands-on involvement in the community he serves. He wants to be not only visible, but involved. You can find Scott anywhere, from coaching a hockey team to the UPS School Community Council. He serves, and has served, on a number of boards within Unity and provincially.

Gilbert Agencies is a proud sponsor of a number of community functions. It is their sense of community pride that prompts them to sponsor community events, groups and functions.

Fun facts about Scott? He raced bobsleds competitively in the Alberta Cup series for two years while taking his schooling in Calgary and he was a Celebrity Bull Rider at Unity Western Days!

Scott Gilbert

Collecting child and spousal support payments

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 New enforcement option to collect child and spousal support payments

The government has introduced changes to support the enforcement of child and spousal support payments through restrictions on hunting and angling licenses.

The legislation amends the The Enforcement of Maintenance Orders Act, 1997 to allow the Maintenance Enforcement Office to restrict the issuing of hunting and angling licenses to individuals who have failed to make scheduled child or spousal support payments.

“These amendments will provide another tool to ensure that individuals who owe child support or spousal support will meet their obligations,” Justice Minister and Attorney General Gordon Wyant said. “These options will only be used after several notices and warnings have been given.”

The amendments require the Director of the Maintenance Enforcement Office to provide individuals with at least 30 days notice of the intention to restrict their ability to obtain a hunting or angling license. These options will only be used when other enforcement options aimed at an individual’s financial resources have proven unsuccessful.

Existing enforcement options include the garnishing of wages and payments from the federal government, reporting the individual to a credit bureau, and the possible suspension of driver’s licenses or passports.

Saskatchewan continues to have one of the highest collection rates for overdue support payments in Canada. In the 2012-13 fiscal year, more than 91 per cent of payments due were collected. This resulted in a record setting amount of more than $39 million in collections.

 

Unity’s Chamber of Commerce

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OpportUNITY … it’s waiting for you.

With this great slogan, a partnership began between the Unity and District Chamber of Commerce and the Town of Unity.Unity, Saskatchewan

  • Billboards
  • Radio ads
  • A video blog
  • Newspaper ads
  • Online advertising
  • Appearances at trade shows

They all worked together to raise the profile of Unity throughout the province. In 2011, the campaign resulted in former Rider Scott Schultz coming to our community for his video blog, Global TV showcasing our town on provincial television and an award from the Saskatchewan Economic Development Association.

There is still opportUNITY in Unity as witnessed by the Chamber officially welcoming new businesses to the business community on a regular basis. New businesses receive their first year’s membership to the Unity and District Chamber of Commerce free of charge and are featured in a newspaper writeup.

New businesses and existing businesses in growth mode need employees. There is plenty of job opportUNITY in Unity, and the Chamber also welcomes new residents with a “welcome wagon” type bag. Newcomers feel appreciated at the same time as local businesses are promoted by information and/or samples being included in the gift bags.

Business and commUNITY — celebrating together

Unity & District Agricultural Society

Irene Lacoursiere, Joan Sperle and Elaine Sperle represented the Unity & District Agricultural Society at Celebrate Unity 2013. The society was recognized for 102 years of hosting events such as the annual fall fair and trade show.

The Unity Chamber of Commerce further recognizes the opportUNITY each year at its Celebrate Unity event which acknowledges new businesses, celebrates business milestone anniversaries, recognizes commUNITY initiatives such as hosting of provincial sporting events, introduces new owners and managers to the community and congratulates individuals who have provided exemplary business or public service. The celebratory evening includes a catered supper and unique entertainment each year, such as the a capella singing group Hoja in 2013.

Clark Ubell, Jaron Bearing

Kelly McLellan, left, congratulates Clark Ubell of Jaron Bearing and Hydraulic (1998) Ltd. on being recognized for the exemplary service he provides to customers. In his nomination letter, Kelly said, “So, for the farmer who has gotten his grain in the bins before the frost. For the trucker who has his truck safely on the road again. For the grader operator who keeps our streets and roads clear. For the mechanic who fixes the school buses our children ride in every day. For the town foreman who keeps things running without a hitch. And for the welder who needs to keep his business running smoothly to support his family. … Thank you.”

Stay tuned for details on Celebrate Unity 2014. And if you know of a business celebrating a special anniversary or of someone who provides business or community service “above and beyond,” please let us know! (You can comment below or talk to any member of the executive.)

For more on what the Chamber does, including sponsoring and organizing Santa Day, lobbying local and provincial government, promoting member businesses, life and disability insurance, training opportunities, Canada Day activities and the Western Days downtown barbecue, see http://unitystories.com/chamber-of-commerce/. For Chamber contact information, visit http://unitystories.com/chamber-of-commerce/contact-the-chamber/.