Here's who's running for a spot on city council in Yorkton

Yorkton, Sask. -

Yorkton’s civic election is fast approaching with advance polls opening up this week and election day happening on Nov.13.

A total of 10 candidates are running for six seats on Yorkton's City Council. CTV News spoke with each of them to gain an insight into why they've thrown their respective hats in the ring.

 

Dustin Brears – Incumbent

Incumbent candidate Dustin Brears said he enjoyed his first term in city hall.

“I truly enjoyed my first term listening to people, listening to businesses and just understanding what's going on in the city, and then being able to effect change. It was just truly rewarding," he said.

Gurjit Dhaliwal

Gurjit Dhaliwal, candidate for city council, expressed his interest of making a positive impact on Yorkton.

“Since coming to Yorkton I instantly fell in love with the city. I want to make a positive impact in the best of my abilities that I can, and try to give back, to create a better business environment for our small business, medium businesses, and just to see people happy,” Dhaliwal expressed.

"For people who know me, I work at The Bentley and the dedication I put into the home there to bring it to where it is, is with my team. We all work together. I have a very collaborative approach; we all have to work together if you want to achieve something and be successful."

Randy Goulden – Incumbent

Also seeking re-election, is candidate Randy Goulden, who feels privileged to receive Yorkton’s support.

"I've been very privileged to get the support of Yorkton residents to run on council and work with the councils of the day and I'm asking for their support one more time,” said Goulden.

"I truly believe I want to give back to my community and to continue to sit on council and make decisions for the very best of our residents."

Ron Irvine

Putting his name in the race as well is candidate Ron Irvine.

"I’m born and raised in Yorkton. I graduated in 1995 from Yorkton Regional High School and moved away,” he said. “In 2007 I accepted a general manager position with Access Communications and moved my family back and raised my family here in Yorkton. Over a decade I’ve been with Scouts Canada here as a leader and fundraising coordinator with the Yorkton chapter. I was on the Chamber of Commerce for five years including a stint as president in 2012 and I’ve been on the Yorkton Film Festival board now for over a decade and I’m currently sitting as the co-chair,” Irvine also said.

“I felt that my connections with the community, my experience with the community, in my position, I've worked on projects all over the province with different municipalities from the south all the way up to the north. I felt my experience, my education, my connections would be helpful, and I thought maybe this is something I could help with. That’s why I’m here."

Todd Kulscar

Candidate Todd Kulscar said if elected he would like to spark change.

"Being a resident of Yorkton, I've been living here over the past 15 years, I have a family here. I know we've had some things going on in the past with the City of Yorkton and I would like to get in on council and hopefully make some changes for the better, and to have a better future for everyone," said Kulscar.

"I’ve been in the community for quite a while, I’ve had a business for five years. I’m on Yorkton Business Improvement District (YBID) as a chair, I’ve been very community oriented. My best bet is to make some changes in the community, hopefully for the better and make a better city for everyone."

Quinn Haider – Incumbent

Candidate Quinn Haider said he is seeking re-election for a third term as there are city projects he would like to see to completion.

“There’s lots of reasons I’m running. It’s because I want to inform people, I want to learn more about this myself, and then I want to be able to teach people because in my heart of hearts that’s what I am is a teacher,” voiced Haider.

“What’s unique about the municipal level is you’re not just electing one person; at this level of government you're electing seven people, an entire team. My whole philosophy is [that] I'm a team-based player and I want to contribute to the team that we're assembling here for the City of Yorkton for my third term because there's lots still left to do. I know of some significant massive projects and some unique challenges that are coming our way that are way bigger than any one level of government.”

Stressing the importance of collaboration, Haider went on to say that the city’s success will take a team of dedicated people, business owners, local residents and service groups to find solutions.

Greg Litvanyi

Based on his background in Yorkton’s Fire Protective Services candidate Greg Litvanyi shared his reason for running.

"I've always been involved in the city through various charities, different organizations, community events. I've worked, did my whole career here with the fire department and I just want to be able to give back to make it a place we're happy to live in and safe to live in and a place that my daughter, who has just gone away to university this year, wants to come back to and live,” Litvanyi expressed.

“I want [Yorkton] to have decent jobs, health care, I want to have a community that we are all proud to call home.”

Stephanie Ortynsky

Candidate Stephanie Ortynsky said she decided to run with the goal of bringing a new perspective to council.

"I think city council is the best way to have impact in our community. Local government affects the day-to-day services that we come to rely on, roads, infrastructure, water, our education system. To be able to have an impact, and a say on that, to bring the voices of Yorkton to the table in that decision making, is something I look forward to,” shared Ortynsky.

"I have studied, worked, and done evaluation projects for over 15 years in Saskatchewan, Ontario, internationally, and I would like to bring that knowledge to the city for some innovative ideas to build on the great work that's been done thus far. It’s an opportune time to have a young perspective, fresh ideas, and a more balanced city council."

Lauretta Ritchie-McInnes

Putting her name in the race as well is candidate Lauretta Ritchie-McInnes.

"I’ve been a resident of Yorkton for over 30 years and I’m a proponent of democracy. I also believe people should serve and give back to the community whenever they can. What I’ve done over the past few years is I’ve got involved with the [Yorkton] Fire Protective Services Committee, Yorkton Business Improvement District (YBID), as well as the Yorkton Public Library,” shared Ritchie-McInnes.

“Through those committees and service work that I've done, I've learned a lot about the businesses and the organizations, and how our city runs. I hope that someday, soon, I can be a part of the city council and be an effective and efficient member of council as well."

Darcy Zaharia – Incumbent

Also seeking re-election for a third term is candidate Darcy Zaharia.

"I love our community. I was born and raised here, except for a stretch when I went to university, but I moved back here permanently in 2000 and became involved since. I ran for council 2016 and am now finishing up my second term,” stated Zaharia.

“I love the community. When you are out and about small town people talk to you, you are one phone call away from talking to someone that knows something. I really enjoy that, I like looking into the processes. I don't want to be that person who just complains about a question or a certain topic, I want to dig into it and find it. I enjoy that and like doing that for people. That just makes me want to keep on going and do it here again for another term.”

Stance on infrastructure and taxes

If elected to sit on council from 2024-2028, candidates were asked where they stand regarding infrastructure and taxes.

Brears expressed his platform that in his previous term council kept tax increases modest.

“This term on council we were able to keep tax increases to an absolute minimum. We have external factors such as the RCMP, and other things, that sort of get dictated to us, but as far as city spending, responsible spending allowed us to keep taxes at bay and to a minimum and that’s what I plan to continue,” Brears stated.

“All I’ve heard recently [about infrastructure] is our roads in Yorkton. With undertaking York Road’s reconstruction. we have many more roads on a five-year capital plan to hopefully get them replaced or repaired as well. Roads are a big thing, underground utilities, things people don’t see. My plan is to continue to manage those and fix them responsibly so that we’re not breaking the bank, but we’re also giving Yorkton good value for its tax dollars.”

Dhaliwal shared his stance on the matter and said infrastructure is of the utmost importance.

“As we know infrastructure is vital for the community. It affects everyone that lives here, sewage systems need to be upgraded so it supports the city’s needs. I’m big on recreational activities, upgrading our playgrounds, our recreational buildings, having areas for people to go and play with their kids is vital for a healthy community,” said Dhaliwal.

“Taxes are always a sticky subject. If you want a vibrant healthy community you have to have those taxes in place, it’s just how you spend those taxpayers money is important and how you stretch it so you get a better spend from those taxes.”

If elected, Goulden voiced her opinion regarding infrastructure and taxes and said Yorkton is facing an infrastructure deficit.

“As I’ve been working with both city council and president of the Saskatchewan Urban Municipalities Association (SUMA), I’ve been hearing that Yorkton is absolutely the same as many communities across this province. We’re facing an infrastructure deficit. We have old infrastructure, and we have limited funding to continue to improve,” Goulden stated.

“In Yorkton, if you laid all of our infrastructure out in a line it would be 756 kilometers long. That would be from Yorkton to Vegreville and that’s the type of infrastructure we’ll have to continue to maintain.”

“That’s the balance [with taxes]. We know we need the infrastructure, we know we need the quality of life with recreation facilities, but we have to balance that with the economy and the viability and what our taxpayers can sustain because we know we want to provide quality of life and that means that our taxpayers have to be able to have discretionary funding to enjoy all the amenities here in our community.”

Irvine expressed that due to inflation and cost of living, tax increases should be a last resort.

“Obviously what we are all feeling in 2024 - with inflation and the rise for price of living - raising taxes would certainly be a last resort. It’s all about finding efficiencies. In Yorkton we do know there are some infrastructure issues we have here, there’s going to be a lot of work over the next number of years, for whoever is successful on council, to advocate with the different levels on government on these infrastructure deficits,” said Irvine.

“I know that (the city) announced that there is a bit of a surplus with the city and there will be a better discussion on what to do with that money and how that will go. Surely some of that will go to fixing some of the infrastructure deficits whether it’s the sewers under Broadway, or other things in that nature.”

Kulscar shared his platform involving infrastructure and taxes and also agreed increases should try to be avoided.

“Hopefully we don’t have to do anything more with the taxes, we definitely don’t want to see those go up by any means,” Kulscar said.

"As for infrastructure, hopefully we can start working on some of these streets that need repairs. Now that York Road is finished, hopefully we can focus on some of these other roads that are deteriorating."

“In our upcoming term, and future terms, I know of some very big projects that are coming our way. It’s not a secret that we are in the top of the queue for a new hospital and not all of that comes from the City of Yorkton, but a significant portion of it does so we’re going to have to figure out how to do that. Our wastewater treatment plant outside of town is in its later stages of life. We have to come up with funding for that. Both of those projects are significant expenses,” said Haider.

“When we talk about infrastructure, aside from York Road, there are massive projects coming our way that we have to figure out how to fund, and it’s going to require some significant partnerships. Grain Millers Road is not a City of Yorkton road, but it’s hugely important to the economy around here. We are actively seeking out partnerships and creative ways to get that road paved so it’s safe, the business expansion can continue out there, and that things can continue to grow here in Yorkton.”

Litvanyi expressed his platform of decision making when it comes to the two concerns.

“One of my key points are is accountability, efficiency and transparency. I believe there’s a lot of areas in the cities where we can be a little more efficient in our operations,” stated Litvanyi.

“Taxes are taxes, we have no choice to administer them as a city, operate them as a city, and operate the city on a tax dollar, but I believe through some efficiencies and some accountability throughout the entire city we can be competitive in the marketplace as far as taxes go.”

If elected, Ortynsky shared her stance regarding infrastructure and taxes.

"Like many places in Canada there has been an infrastructure deficit because of years of underinvestment in public infrastructure, roads, sewers, water treatment plants and municipalities. It comes to what citizens want to pay for," voiced Ortynsky.

"If people want to pay for infrastructure it’s something we need to make investments in. From a city perspective, we also need to ask other tours of government - provincial and federal – to contribute as well, with granting programs like Canada Infrastructure Bank. There can be unique ways that I’ve looked at in making it more of a reality, if it hasn’t been accessible to the City of Yorkton previously. By in large, when I teach my students it’s a three to one ratio. Any infrastructure project that you’re spending money on, the initial cost you have to times that by three, and budget for that as you go forward with city planning."

Ritchie-McInnes stated infrastructure is of the utmost importance.

“Infrastructure is fundamental to a viable and growing community, economic development, public safety, mobility and connectivity are all reliant on a good infrastructure,” stated Ritchie-McInnes.

"Without sufficient and properly funded infrastructure it inhibits people’s ability to fully participate in the community. My goal is to see that residents in Yorkton thrive."

In his previous term on council, Zaharia said a balance of both are required when making decisions for the city.

"Every community in Saskatchewan, and probably in Canada, in the U.S. and probably in the world, faces infrastructure deficits. I wanted to do [our interview] on York Road because this is one of our biggest spends in city history. We have two more major spends that are coming up that is going to top those," Zaharia shared.

"People are always concerned that residents don’t want taxes to increase at all. They want zero tax increase, but it’s just not possible with escalating costs. With the infrastructure in most of our city, not just the roads, but the water pipes and sewer pipes that are under, it’s major dollars. If we don’t put money to it or try to address it proactively then the cost of going at it reactively – as far as infrastructure underground – I think the cost is three or four times more. It’s just trying to figure out that mix that you can do and what’s palatable for the residents."

Voters are required to bring a piece of identification when casting their ballots.

On Nov. 5, advance polling will take place through a drive-thru at the City Operations Centre from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Following on Thursday, Nov. 7 at the Gloria Hayden Community Centre, residents can place their votes from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

The last day to vote will be on Nov. 13 from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. at the Gloria Hayden Community Centre.