Martensville City Council met for their last meeting of October on Tuesday the 15th at 5pm. The evening had one delegation from Ward Wiebe who spoke to Council regarding the All-Terrain Vehicle Act. Wiebe was speaking as a representative of the residents of Aspen Parke Estates, who were all concerned about the dirt bikes that travel at high speeds down 10th Avenue. According to Wiebe, this has been an ongoing issue for some time, and not only is the noise a problem, but the concern of someone being injured is also a worry. The request to Council was to revise the All-Terrain Vehicle Act within Martensville to reflect other surrounding communities and state that no unregistered all-terrain vehicles are allowed within city limits. This item will be brought back to a future meeting for further discussion.
Following the delegation, administration from each department provided an update to Council. Scott Blevins, City Manager, noted that they are currently reviewing contracts with consultants for the new recreation facility.
Carla Budnick, City Clerk, spoke to Council about the Rural Reconciliation gathering that the City of Martensville hosted on October 3rd. Budnick was part of the planning committee and was pleased with the turnout of approximately 380 people attending.
Matt Gruza, Director of Infrastructure and Planning talked about the sanitary sewer replacement project that is currently taking place on 3rd Avenue South and noted that the contractor has been proactive in dealing with residents and mitigating any access issues that they may have. “Unfortunately, due to the nature of the work being completed, there will be some inconvenience for every resident on the street, but every effort is being made to minimize the inconvenience,” Gruza explained. Work continues at the intersection of Main Street and Centennial Drive, and Gruza noted that administration is monitoring the project closely and working with Catterall and Wright to ensure that there are no further delays. Updates will be provided to the community as they become available.
Council then moved on to discuss the Short-Term Disability Policy for the City of Martensville. Information about this was provided by Carla Budnick, which explained that in the past, employees that were away for an extended period of time used their sick time, rather than applying for Short-Term Disability. Due to this, the Short-Term Disability Policy has been drafted in order to provide employees with a better understanding of who qualifies for this and what the wait times and procedures are to apply for short-term disability. “The City wants to ensure that employees access the benefit available to them during times of extended illness,” Budnick said in her report.
The final item was brought back from last week’s meeting regarding a Discretionary Use topic for a custom guitar business on Glenwood Terrace. The City had received an application requesting the approval of a low volume custom guitar producer, which would be located within the applicant’s insulated detached garage. Special approval is required, as the business would require more space to operate and store the necessary equipment than what is allowed under a Type 1 Home Based Business. In the information provided to Council, Jack Facca explained that he and his wife purchased Canada’s original and oldest electric guitar company established in Saskatoon in 1962. The original owner was a mentor to Facca and sadly passed away in 2017. Wanting to keep the legacy alive, Facca will be learning more about the art of creating custom guitars and is looking at officially starting this new venture in 2022. If things are successful and expansion is required, the long-term goal is to find a suitable commercial location within Martensville. Council supported this request and it was formally approved.