Vol. 105 No. 28
THURSDAY, JULY 10, 2014
Box 40, 122 Main Street, Biggar, Saskatchewan S0K 0M0
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CN makes application to demolish railway station
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any of our readers have noticed the public notice signs plastered all over the CN station at the end of Main Street and have let us know. There is also an ad in this issue of The Independent. It states that CN proposes to demolish its railway station and has applied in accordance with the Heritage Railway Stations Protection Act to proceed with this process. The application will be filed on July 25 with Hon. Leona Aglukkaq, Minister of the Environment. If anyone objects to the proposed demolition they may send a letter stating their reasons to the address listed in the ad. As mentioned above there is already talk around town regarding the station. The emails that have been sent to The Independent question the
like a heart transplant. advice. residents now know validity of saving such a but one reader thought A f t e r h e a r i n g m a n y that at least a process dilapidated building. It perhaps, for example, Of course, this process has been described as an t h e t i m b e r s m i g h t would require working comments in past years has been initiated to w i t h a q u a l i f i e d about the condition and deal with the crumbling “eye sore at the end of be saved and used to restore another building curatorial person who state of the building at structure. Main Street.” could provide expert the end of Main Street, Some brief research in the province. Sort of into the act says that before a building can be demolished all resources to repair it have been exhausted. Then it comes down to a question of safety and health issues for the citizens of the community. There have been other suggestions put forward as Biggar doesn’t want t o f o r g e t i t s r a i l wa y heritage. It should be noted that there is a caboose at the entrance to Biggar which indicates that history. But another suggestion was to restore the gardens and grounds to their former beauty and erect a monument on the site. This would be more feasible in terms of fundraising and still preserve the railroad’s prominence in Biggar. Future of station in the air . . . This week there were signs (see inset) posted I t i s q u e s t i o n a b l e around the CN station at the end of Main Street. As you can see the shingles whether or not there are falling off as are the eavestroughs. What was once a bustling workplace is anything worthwhile is now in desperate need of major, major repairs. CN is making an application to salvageable given the the federal minister of environment on July 25. For a more detailed explanation of what s t a t e o f t h e b u i l d i n g the public notice says see the ad on Page 8 of this issue of The Independent. (Independent photo by Daryl Hasein)
Saskatchewan credit unions accepting donations for Red Cross disaster response The coverage of the floods in the southeastern part of Saskatchewan shows that Mother Nature has a mind of her own and disasters can happen. Roads disappeared,
some communities were evacuated with many towns and rural municipalities declaring a state of emergency. It is at times like this
that people come together in a show of strength and help each other. In the days following the rains, the premier toured the area and appealed to
A visit to RCMP . . . Cst. Regan Eyford shows some of the day camp kids the computer system. The day camp toured the RCMP offices on Tuesday and learned lots of stuff. The annual day camp is running again this year at Jubilee Stadium and organizers have many activities and fun things planned for the kids during July and August. (Independent photo by Daryl Hasein)
the federal government f o r a s s i s t a n c e. F l o o d recovery centres were opened and were manned by representatives from various groups, one of these being the Canadian Red Cross. On July 4 the Canadian Red Cross and Saskatchewan credit unions announced that cash donation to help Saskatchewan residents devastated by recent disasters will be accepted at participating S a s k a t c h e wa n c r e d i t unions from July 4-25. Biggar and District Credit Union is one of the participating credit unions in this initiative. Based on experience from the 2011 floods, the Red Cross is preparing for a large recovery effort to help Saskatchewan families return to their homes. The Red Cross is currently mobilizing personnel and supplies,
such as flood clean-up kits, to assist people impacted by flooding. “The Red Cross plans to be there to help families and communities rebuild after flooding in the weeks a n d m o n t h s a h e a d ,” s a y s R e b e c c a B e n k o, Operations Manager for the Canadian Red Cross in Saskatchewan. “We appreciate the continued support of Saskatchewan credit unions for helping to make it even easier for people to support Red Cross disaster operations here in Saskatchewan.” “Saskatchewan credit unions believe in helping communities and are especially proud to be able to assist the people in our own province who are suffering after the devastating f l o o d s ,” s a y s D e b b i e Lane, Executive VicePresident, SaskCentral. “Saskatchewan credit unions are prepared
to help the Red Cross collect donations fro support relief efforts in Saskatchewan.” The Canadian Red Cross relies on generous Canadians and corporations to support families impacted by disaster. The assistance provided by Red Cross does not duplicate other available assistance or services and is designed to ensure that essential needs are met and families receive the support they need to recover from disaster. Donations to the Canadian Red Cross will help support families as they recover from disaster. This support may include household repair and clean up materials, replacement items for children such as cribs, occupational and transportation support and replacement of essential health items.