A number of changes will be made to the City of Weyburn’s traffic bylaw, after it received second and third readings at the council meeting on Monday evening, including some recent changes made based on input from the public.
Among the changes will be a time limit on the 30 km/h speed zones for schools and recreational areas, which until now has been in effect 24/7, 365 days a year. The speed limit will still be in effect all year round, but it will now only be in effect from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
This will impact all areas around schools, and will include Confederation Drive, near Jubilee Park/CU Spark Centre/Legacy Park Elementary and the Don Mitchell Tot Lot, with a recent addition of the Elks Park playground on Douglas Road.
In addition, with public comments about the level of traffic and noise on First Avenue at the intersection of 16th Street, the speed limit allowing 50 km/h from 13th to 16th will now be moved to east of 16th Street.
City engineer Jennifer Wilkinson noted there were requests to move the truck route from First Avenue, but she noted this isn’t going to be possible due to the requirement that the City must provide a truck route. She said to move it to bypass the city to the north is outside of their jurisdiction as it would take trucks into the RM of Weyburn.
There was a transportation study done with the City and RM that has a long-term goal of addressing this issue, but it does not fall within the bounds of this bylaw, she added.
The bylaw changes also clarifies the wording around parking in alleyways, as the bylaw now states that parking is only allowed for active loading and unloading, for a maximum of 60 minutes at a time.
• In other council business, council was given an update on the Credit Union Spark Centre, which may now not open until the end of September, due to delays in shipping of materials for the facility.
Leisure Services director Andrew Crowe gave a rundown on the progress on the construction of the new City facility, which is located alongside the new Legacy Park Elementary School on Fifth Street.
The facility is about 99 per cent completed construction, with Wright Construction on the site now for 874 days.
“We are still moving forward,” said Crowe, noting that they are looking at late July for system commissioning before it is handed over to the City of Weyburn.
A number of the projects still to be done include the installation of the boards for the outdoor arena, expected to be done in mid to late August; equipment testing, and out-of-contract work, as well as specialized training of the facility staff.
The indoor play equipment has been installed, and installation of the game simulator systems will be done in early July. In his photos of the facility, Crowe noted the play equipment takes up a lot of space, and he couldn’t get it all in with three photos.
The City so far has financial sponsorship commitments totaling $3,860,590, said Crowe, including a recent donation of $300,000 from Jerry and Orlanda Mainil to sponsor the indoor turf field, and $150,000 from the Canadian Cultural Spaces Fund towards the new art gallery space.
Asked about the delays, Crowe explained, “We’re at the mercy of shipping of components that are being manufactured in other parts of the world. The target date for opening is a moving target, and right now it’s at the end of September. That’s all going to factor when we get these pieces in. We’re doing everything in our power to get ahead. It’s a bit of a moving target, but we’re doing our best.”
Council also approved a schedule of fees for the new Spark Centre, which Crowe noted is based on the City’s policy for 50 per cent recovery of costs. The rates proposed are for one year, so adjustments to the fees can be made once the facility is in operation and they figure out some of the operational details.
There will be “pillar” programs, which include before-school programs, after-school programs, youth evening programs, teen programs and a senior walking program.
A feature of the fees schedule is the Leisure Services Super Pass, which will get a resident into all City-owned recreation facilities, with a monthly, three-month, nine-month and annual super pass to be available.
There will also be a subsidized party rate, to enable individuals or groups to rent time to use the facility’s amenities, and can be used for banquets, parties or events.
