White City to move forward with boundary change plan

White City is going ahead with an application to change its boundaries, which would lead to the annexation of some neighbouring areas.

The town’s application has to go to the Saskatchewan Municipal Board and the provincial government before it can be approved.

The proposal has been discussed for more than a year, with public consultation and submissions from residents and businesses in the area.

At a meeting last week, the town received 50 written submissions (28 of which approved of the idea and 22 of which opposed the idea) as well as 26 verbal presentations. White City also received more than 950 letters from residents in the area, with more than 900 in favour of the proposal.

The Rural Municipality of Edenwold has resisted the idea since it was first proposed.

“We’ve listened carefully to all of the feedback from the community at large and are moving forward with the proposal given the extremely strong support we’ve received,” White City Mayor Bruce Evans said in a media release. “People believe it’s time we become one incorporated urban community with one voice.”

The town’s proposal would see White City, Emerald Park, nearby commercial and industrial lands, the residential subdivisions of Escott, Deneve, Park Meadows Estates, Meadow Ridge Estates and other rural land combined into one urban municipality.

In its release, the town said that the area is home to nearly 5,500 people and its growth is expected to continue.

“However, the Town is being limited by the increasing amount of urban development adjacent to its borders,” the release said. “The inefficiency of the current unusual and confining geographic and governance model and the lack of integration concerning taxation, land development and the provision of school, recreation and other municipal services is challenging long-term planning for White City.”