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The lights were dancing
Egg Sandwiches
Point of attraction. Renowned influencer explores Estevan.
Egg McMuffin
PAGE A3
Sausage ‘N Egg McMuffin
Power of wildlife. Local photographer wins provincial contest.
Bacon ‘N Egg McMuffin
EVERYTHING YOU NEED.
PAGE A5
International Women’s Day
Women of Estevan. We keep celebrating outstanding local women. PAGE A11 - 13
It’s farm safety week! Check out Agri News for some safety tips and stories. PAGE A15 - A18
JUST USE THE
APP. This photo of the Northern Lights was taken by Byron Fichter of Byron Fichter Fotography just west of Lampman on Saturday night. Southeast Saskatchewan residents had a rare opportunity to view the aurora borealis, and local photographers were eager to snap photos. A pumpjack and the lights of the town, combined with the lights, created quite a scene.
Estevan’s spending per capita has remained stable in recent years By David Willberg
A new report released by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) shows the amount that municipalities are spending on a per capita basis in Saskatchewan, and it paints an interesting picture for Estevan. The CTF grouped communities into five different classifications, with one for Regina and Saskatoon, another for the small cities, including Estevan, and then towns and rural municipalities. The CTF did not release figures for villages and northern municipalities due to a small sample size of available data. It also didn’t calculate per person spending for resort villages due to dramatic population fluctuation in many of these communities. The CTF also examines how the
numbers have changed from 2017-2019, using audited financial statements. (Numbers for 2020 would not be available as of yet). And while there are some discrepancies in terms of population, and some glaring data entry errors (Bienfait’s population was listed as 4,597 for 2017), it offers a snapshot of spending over a three-year span. In the case of Estevan, it ranked third in spending per capita from 2017-2019 among Saskatchewan small cities, but the spending has remained consistent. The cit y ’s expenses were at $31,030,403, or $2,756 per capita, based on a population of 11,258 from the 2016 census. Spending number grew slightly to $31,087,937, or $2,761 per capita, in 2018. Expenses for the city increased to
$31,537,340 in 2019, but the CTF used a different population figure for Estevan of 11,483, leaving spending for the city at $2,746 per person. The 2019 expenses would include expenses associated with the water intake project that shifted the city’s primary water source from Boundary Dam to Rafferty Dam. Estevan received millions of dollars from the federal and provincial governments for the project. However, the CTF report does not account for projects made possible through government grants. Swift Current led the province’s small cities in per capita spending in all three years, and was at $3,718 per person in 2019. The next four cities in 2019, including Estevan, were separated by $48 per capita. A2 » TAXPAYERS
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