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SERVING CANADA’S SUNSHINE CAPITAL

Publisher / Marketing Specialist

Deanna Tarnes - dtarnes@estevanmercury.ca

Editor

David Willberg - dwillberg@estevanmercury.ca

Editorial Staff: Ana Bykhovskaia - abykhovskaia@estevanmercury.ca Brian Zinchuk - brian.zinchuk@sasktel.net

Marketing Specialists

Teresa Hrywkiw - thrywkiw@estevanmercury.ca Kimberlee Pushie - kpushie@estevanmercury.ca

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Ana Villarreal - avillarreal@estevanmercury.ca

Administration: Vaila Lindenbach - vlindenbach@estevanmercury.ca Fay Bonthoux - fbonthoux@estevanmercury.ca

Wednesday, May 13, 2020

Volume 115 Issue 7 Contact us: (306) 634-2654 68 Souris Avenue N. Estevan, SK S4A 2M3 www.estevanmercury.ca @Estevan_Mercury facebook.com/EstevanMercury

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EDITORIAL

Now can we get our nursing home?

When you look back on the Great Recession of 2008-09, you see that Canada did a better job of weathering the economic storm than most countries.

One of the reasons was a massive economic stimulus program that saw billions of dollars invested into projects to get people working again and to get projects constructed.

The provincial government took that step last week with the introduction of an additional $2 billion in capital spending over the next two years to support health care, education and highways projects, as well as municipal infrastructure.

Like many government projects, the stimulus package was high on promises and talk, but low on specifics. We know that there will be big money poured into health care facilities, but we don’t know how much. We know the government will spend on schools, but the amount is unknown.

For those who have been involved with projects that have been shelved for a long time, this is great news. It might even be a glimmer of hope for those involved with Estevan’s new regional nursing home.

We’ve been waiting more than half a decade for our turn for this project. A celebration was held in January 2015 to mark the end of the Hearthstone Community Campaign, the multi-year fundraising initiative that raised more than $8 million for the new nursing home.

Since the $8 million represented 20 per cent of the projected $40 million cost, the new nursing home was inserted into the queue for new long-term care facilities.

It’s still in the queue.

The new nursing home committee has tried multiple measures to get the building constructed, including the latest move to significantly reduce the costs by redesigning the project and its amenities. The projected expense is now $32 million instead of $40 million.

Until construction on a new nursing home begins, it means all of that time and effort spent on the campaign, and all of the money donated, is merely gathering interest.

Meanwhile, the residents of the current nursing home are forced to live in a facility that is well below the current standard. The staff at the current facility does their best, but they deserve better, too.

It’s hard to believe there are long-term care facilities in Saskatchewan now in worse shape than what we have in Estevan.

We’ll see what else is of interest. Don’t expect to see the government throw around money to retrofit the Shand Power Station and Unit 6 at the Boundary Dam Power Station with carbon capture and storage technology; that decision is still years away.

Also don’t expect to see money for an expansion and renovation of the Estevan Comprehensive School. That project is still in its initial stages, although it might be up for consideration for next year.

If you’re hoping to see the government step forward with money to twin Highways 39 and 6 from Estevan to Regina, keep dreaming. But don’t be surprised if the passing lanes are fast-tracked with this money, or if other highway projects in the region get the green light. (Highway 47 north of Estevan could use some fresh asphalt).

As for the municipal component, Estevan city council eliminated any suspense when it said it wants to use its share for the expansion of the Estevan Police Service’s building. If the project is eligible for the stimulus package, then it eases the financial burden of one much-needed but divisive project in the community.

There’s the obvious question of where all this money is going to come from, who’s going to wind up paying for these projects and how that will happen. Eventually, the bills are going to come in.

And we saw with the federal stimulus of more than a decade ago that the stimulus packages were soon followed by austerity budgets that significantly slashed spending.

Still, for those who have been waiting years for their project to go ahead, such as Estevan’s new nursing home, this spending could be very good news.

Or it could lead to further frustration and anguish that will only prolong the waiting game.

Published weekly by Prairie Newspaper Group Limited Partnership, 68 Souris Avenue N., Estevan, SK S4A 2M3. The Estevan Mercury is owned and operated by Prairie Newspaper Group Limited Partnership, a subsidiary of Glacier Media Inc.

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Oh, the toll a pandemic takes

It was the last 30 seconds or so of Premier Scott Moe’s daily COVID-19 when something peculiar happened. He spoke to the current restrictions that will possibly leave us at a distance from our mothers as their day approaches.

As he took a self-proclaimed “selfish moment” to tell his mother and wife how much they are loved because he will not be with them this Mother’s Day, he broke. His voice cracked and you could clearly see he was fighting off the urge to let it out.

“Many are going to be wishing their mothers and the mothers of their children a happy Mother’s Day through the telephone, FaceTime or through a glass window if they are in a long-term care facility,” said Moe.

“Myself, like many others, will not be spending Mother’s Day with my mom or the mother of my children. I would take this very selfish opportunity to wish them a very happy Mother’s Day. And to the rest of the mothers of this province, I would just say thank you for all you do,” said Moe.

A small moment can show you so much. This pandemic has taken so much out of everyone. Even the man who is tasked with guiding a province. In one moment, as politicians rarely do, we saw a man behind the suit and stature.

The job as a provincial leader is one based on a constant barrage of scrutiny, difficult decisions and very little space reserved to be who you are behind closed doors. The job demands perfection of sorts. Anything less, we in the media and in public will find a way to pick it out and expose whatever we can.

We put our faith in a system, and whenever it wrongs us, we have someone to point to, and that’s Moe.

It might be safe to assume we’ve all had a moment like Moe did on May 8. This pandemic has shaken not only Saskatchewan but the world. We have all been forced to completely shut down the way we have lived this whole time and start from scratch.

Most of us have the luxury of only dealing with our direct circles. Who we are in those circles, does not shake a whole province. We are who we are in our little worlds and for the most part wrong choices serve little repercussions.

Moe does not have that luxury. In a single moment, you could see a flash of a spring election, scrutiny of a delayed pandemic response, outbreaks in the north and a tanking economy build up to what could be seen as a straw that broke the camel’s back: distance from the ones who really know and love you the most.

I don’t take this moment to sit here and tell you to throw away your political beliefs or feel bad for someone because they showed some emotion. Take a moment and understand not only the position we are in as the general public, but the position the people who actually have to make decisions to keep the majority as safe as possible, whether you think they are doing a great job or not.

We are all human and this has hurt us all, even the ones who sit atop their legislative thrones.

Things are starting to somewhat progress in a positive direction. Take the time to look at everyone you come across, be it online or in passing, and understand we all are in this together.

At the present moment, we don’t have access to all of the things we normally do to distract ourselves. We are all looking forward to the day we can get back on our favourite patios, and go see our favourite musicians and favourite sports teams play.

Those days are getting closer the more success social distancing and constant testing have.

Until that day comes, we have each other and the messages we put out into the world. Hopefully, more for the better and not for the worse.

If we’re lucky, we’ll move past this and gain a greater understanding of what happens when we stop pointing fingers and stick together.

Jordan Stricker

Postcards from the Leg.