MOOSE JAW — Incumbent mayor Clive Tolley has announced that he is running in the Nov. 13 municipal election. Presented below are Tolley’s answers to questions from the Moose Jaw Express/MooseJawToday.com. Some answers have been edited for length.
Why do you want to continue to be mayor?
I became the mayor after winning the 2021 byelection. We have made substantial progress in my time as mayor, but we are not done yet! It takes time to learn how to operate in this difficult, multifaceted job, and to build a relationship with council, the city manager, city staff, and other people, both inside and outside of city hall.
It takes time to build a team and collaborate with others to get things done. I have had three years of a four-year term so far, and I think another four years in this office will see me functioning at an even higher level with the knowledge and experience I have gained from my first term.
My experience from my first term will benefit the city as we will build continuity and a team ready to tackle the challenges ahead. I have enjoyed the challenges of this position, and I value the privilege of representing our citizens in this position. People I meet say I am the right person for the job, and I agree. It feels like I am the right person at the right time for our city.
What do you hope to accomplish if re-elected?
Continue to support River Street revitalization including the construction of a new hotel, which will provide added value to the Events Centre and downtown. Make downtown and Crescent Park safe and beautiful for our citizens and tourists alike; support the Moose Jaw Police Service and downtown Moose Jaw initiatives.
Prioritize pothole filling, repaving our streets, and applying dust control to our gravel roads in both commercial and residential areas — do the worst roads first! Market our housing incentive policy, sell vacant city land, use our existing infrastructure, maintain vibrant neighbourhoods, and increase our housing capacity.
Fix the Fourth Avenue Bridge (win arbitration with CPKC), and start planning for a new bridge for the southwest South Hill, which will be necessary with the new school and adjacent housing.
Partner with indigenous people to make Wakamow Valley and Tatawâw Park a gathering place for people to enjoy nature, provide spiritual experiences, and honour our shared past while creating an economic development opportunity for indigenous people and others within our community.
To be inclusive and welcome all people to enjoy life in our beautiful city. To broaden and diversify our tax base, so ultimately, we develop more assessable properties that generate the financial resources needed to fund our police, fire, and city services.
What would be your top area(s) of focus?
The top priority for our new council is the replacement of the Crescent View Lift Station as it is the pumping station that lifts our sewage to our sewage treatment plant in southeast Moose Jaw. I did not list this in my platform because this is an absolute need. It is not negotiable. If the Crescent View Lift Station fails, our sewage system fails.
We applied to the Government of Canada’s ICIP program and were denied. Without funding from the two senior levels of government, funding the Crescent View Lift Station completely on our own will mean other projects will be deferred.
We have now created and filled a position for a grant writer, who has already been successful in receiving funding for smaller projects. We are hopeful that our grant writer can find funding for our lift station and other projects in the future.
Expanding our tax base has been a top area of focus since I have been the mayor, and I plan to continue to make that the area I concentrate on the most. I have and will continue to meet with all potential developers and investors from any part of the world, including, of course, our local businesspeople who are considering expanding and diversifying their business interests in Moose Jaw.
Working closely with our economic development and marketing staff, and with the Chamber of Commerce, we are focusing on agriculture value-added food processing industries, transportation, warehousing and distribution, mining, manufacturing, aviation, technology and of course tourism.
What issues do you think need to be addressed in Moose Jaw?
The major issue Moose Jaw faces is inadequate funding for infrastructure renewal, meaning our streets and roads, sidewalks, curbs and gutters, and our water and sewer systems need replacing at a pace we cannot afford.
Additionally, we have a homeless population of more than 100 people and our public transportation system runs a deficit. Because there was a period of almost 10 years when there was little infrastructure work done, we have been playing catch up.
The good news is we accomplished a great deal this past few years in terms of cast iron replacement, road repairs, and sidewalk replacement. This year I heard complaints about detours. That means the City of Moose Jaw had work done and we are making progress in getting our infrastructure into better shape.
Another especially critical issue is the location for the construction of a new city solid waste management venue (SWMV). The current city landfill has served the community for almost 100 years and is expected to reach the end of its useful life within the next four to five years.
To continue to serve the city and surrounding areas, the city has started the SWMV project. The proposed location has been rejected by the R.M. of Moose Jaw and it will be up to the new city council to work with our city administration on the next steps to take in securing the land necessary for this project.
How would you make life more affordable for residents?
Unfortunately, the cost of living and the cost of operating the City of Moose Jaw continues to rise, and we must manage our city expenditures more wisely. The City of Moose Jaw can help make life more affordable by being good guardians of the taxpayers’ money and getting the most bang for the taxpayers’ buck.
During budget deliberations, which will start immediately after the new council takes office, we must look at each department’s budget request and determine if some programs or services can be cut, reduced, or done more cost-effectively.
I believe the biggest effect the City of Moose Jaw can have is to grow our city and broaden our tax base. Adding more business, development, construction, and people will create more taxable property, increasing our revenues and lightening the load for our existing population and property owners.
How would you reign in excessive and/or unnecessary spending? Would you consider cutting taxes or reducing projects?
With the cost of living rising, we will be hard-pressed to cut taxes unless we, as a city, severely reduce services. The replacement of our Crescent View Lift Station is necessary as is the new landfill.
The replacement of the Fourth Avenue Bridge is particularly important with most people putting it in the category of a need, not a want. These three projects need to be completed. Other projects may have to be delayed as unaffordable at this time.
Would you approve of using taxpayers’ money to support the Hilton Hotel project and/or a related parkade?
No taxpayers’ money should go to directly support the Hilton Hotel project or any other private development in our city. The city funded a very reasonably priced parking study to understand what the parking needs will be near the Events Centre when a hotel is built on River Street West. The results of that study have not yet been published.
When the spa and casino were built the city got involved in financing the parkade and that has been a worthwhile investment for the city. Whether a parkade will be necessary or if the city should invest in another parkade downtown remains to be seen.
The guiding principle for me is to support new developments without risking the taxpayers’ money.
How would you address the issues facing the community’s impoverished and homeless residents?
The Government of Saskatchewan has responsibility for affordable housing and homeless supports, education, health care, social services, hospitals, and the administration of justice, and they can raise the funding for these services. We, the City of Moose Jaw, do not have the authority or the funding to take responsibility for these services, but we do have a role to play.
We care and we do what we can. Our city council decided to sell William Milne Place, a residence for senior single men, to the Moose Jaw Non-Profit Housing Corporation (MJNPHC) to facilitate a new supportive housing initiative.
MJNPHC and Square One Community Inc. are forming a partnership to use William Milne Place to provide supportive housing to vulnerable unhoused community members and current tenants who are at imminent risk of experiencing homelessness in the immediate future. Square One could be housing its first program participants before Christmas.
As well, Hope Ministries, a new non-profit organization, and Square One are collaborating with other determined groups, the Salvation Army, John Howard Society, St. Aidan Church, St. Andrew’s Church, and Zion United Church to provide meals daily to those that are hungry in our community. Square One is publishing a weekly meal schedule to make sure people know where and when to go for a meal.
I applaud these organizations and their volunteers for their efforts. They are seeking volunteers and donors if you wish to contribute to this made-in-Moose-Jaw solution.
How would you enhance security or safety in the community?
As mayor, I am automatically a member of the Board of Police Commissioners. The board must work closely with the police chief and the Moose Jaw Police Service (MJPS).
These are the recent initiatives which have been developed to keep our community safe.
Foot and bicycle patrols: Officers patrol the downtown area on foot and by bicycle.
Business visits: Officers visit businesses in the downtown area.
The Moose Jaw Trespass Prevention Program (MJTPP) is a public safety initiative that allows officers to remove Trespass to Property Act violators from commercial properties. This can be done without the need for a call-for-service or direct involvement from an owner or property representative after hours. This program would be in effect during after-hours of the business or when the property is vacant.
Community Threat Assessment & Safety Protocol (COMTAST): A protocol that community partners use to work together to prevent violence and promote safety.
Crime Prevention through Environmental Design (CPTED): The MJPS can provide a risk assessment and discuss ways to implement CPTED principles. To book a CPTED safety assessment, email [email protected].
The MJPS also has a community policing division that manages calls for service, including bylaw complaints, traffic enforcement, mental health assistance, neighbourhood disputes, and criminal offences.
The Province of Saskatchewan recently announced funding for eight new officers for the MJPS. These new officers will provide more boots on the ground to assist with patrolling downtown, Crescent Park and areas identified for additional surveillance.
What steps would you take to increase economic growth or encourage businesses to move here?
Primarily we must understand that we are in competition with other municipalities and we, therefore, need to learn what they are doing so that we can effectively compete with them. As well, we need to be careful that we protect our existing businesses, not providing incentives to investors from another location, to come in and compete with our local businesses, giving the out-of-town businesses an advantage.
There are several ways to increase economic growth.
Diversification: look for opportunities outside our usual sectors and diversify existing businesses.
Build human capital: increase our population through immigration, business needs skilled labour. Human capital is a key driver of economic development.
Improve infrastructure: is the foundation of the economy and can lead to faster growth.
Promote exports: help market foreign sales for our local companies.
Tax cuts and tax rebates: we have a program in place for new businesses, a property tax reduction phased in.
Work with Sask. Polytechnic: help transform programs into new innovative technologies.
15 Wing: help local businesses understand the bidding process required to access and qualify for this SkyAlyne project work.
Chamber of Commerce: continue to communicate effectively with the chamber to maximize opportunities that come along.
By maintaining an up-to-date and informative website we can show that we are open and ready for business. As mayor, I will always be available to meet and greet potential investors and businesses interested in our city to make them feel welcome to locate here.
How would you address the situation with SAMA and the business community?
There have been business property owners who have brought their concerns to council and demonstrated that their assessment is not fair in comparison to other properties. We took those concerns to the Saskatchewan Assessment Management Agency (SAMA) and asked them to explain and defend their assessments.
SAMA’s response was to attend council and to explain how assessment works, while not directly addressing the concerns we brought to their attention.
This disappointed me and led me to lose confidence in SAMA’s assessment services. Property assessment drives property taxation. We have our property assessment done on a contract with SAMA. Their contract concludes at the end of 2025. Do we sign a new contract with them, or do we try another solution?
We used to have our own assessment department. The city disbanded it to save money and because there was a lack of qualified assessors out there. We can partner with another municipality to do our assessment. I commit to working with our administration to determine the best course of action for the City of Moose Jaw with our assessment services.
It should be noted that our commercial taxation per capita comparison shows Moose Jaw is the seventh lowest of Saskatchewan cities.
Would you halt spending money on the agri-food industrial park until an anchor tenant is found?
The Great Plains Power Station, constructed for SaskPower starting in 2021 and ready to be commissioned for service later this year, is the anchor tenant for our agri-food industrial park. The power station will employ about 25 full-time people when it opens. Also, Saskatchewan Polytechnic purchased land in the agri-food industrial park and runs a farm operator training program there.
The City of Moose Jaw continues to market industrial land for sale in the agri-food industrial park. A pea production facility owned by a German company has not materialized, however, with power, natural gas, water, and sewage, and two national railways, and highways near the property, I expect development in this park over the next few years. To my knowledge there is no spending at present at the agri-food industrial park.
What is your long-term vision for the community 10 to 20 years down the road? How would you bring that to fruition?
Moose Jaw has always been and will continue to be an agriculture service centre. Before I became mayor, a decision was made to create the agri-food industrial park because agriculture value-added production was expected to expand in the coming years.
While our agri-food industrial park is slowly developing, the promise of value-added agri-food production is happening in our community.
Donald’s Fine Foods expanded its operations to add a major new pork plant, North 49 Foods, to its Thunder Creek Pork operations. Simpson Seeds is building a flour mill to add to its business in Moose Jaw. I believe we should continue to market our city for agri-food production, and we will see further development of this type in the next 10 to 20 years.
Tourism is alive and well in Moose Jaw and we should continue to add more attractions to draw tourists to our city in the coming years. We need to re-develop River Street West with a hotel and other venues that expand on our Roaring ’20s heritage theme.
We have the historic downtown, we have the Events Centre, the Tunnels, the Moose Jaw Centre for Arts & Culture, the Temple Gardens Hotel & Spa, the Grant Hall Hotel and so many things to see and do downtown including an impressive array of murals and restaurants.
We need to fill in River Street West with carefully created businesses that complement what we already have to maximize our downtown tourism income.
I believe the next big opportunity we have is to create tourism around our Wakamow Valley and Tatawâw Park. A group of Moose Javians have formed a steering committee aimed at revitalizing the former Wild Animal Park, now known as Tatawâw Park, and we are preparing for public engagement sessions to gauge the local mood and interest.
The steering committee is cognizant of how much the valley means to Moose Jaw people of all backgrounds and they will proceed cautiously, deeply invested in making sure these innovative ideas for Tatawâw are solid and economically sustainable. The word Tatawâw means, “Everyone is welcome.”
The group has consulted with Métis architects, the archaeologist working on the nearby slump zone site, the City of Moose Jaw, and has traveled to various Indigenous-led heritage attractions across the prairies to see what makes other projects successful.
We believe we can build a truly sustainable tourist attraction that will tell the authentic story of life in and around Moose Jaw over the past several hundred years.
You cannot address the long-term vison for Moose Jaw without talking about pilot training, the Snowbirds, 15 Wing, and our own Moose Jaw Municipal Airport Authority (MJMAA).
The Government of Canada has awarded a contract for the Future Aircrew Training (FAcT) Program to SkyAlyne. Set to last 25 years with a value of $11.2 billion, the contract re-imagines training for the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF), consolidating three aircrew training operations under SkyAlyne and Canada’s joint management.
15 Wing Moose Jaw is expected to receive more than a third of the contracted program investment. This program is a significant step forward in preparing Canadian military pilots, air combat systems officers, and airborne electronic sensor operators for tomorrow’s challenges.
The Snowbirds will continue to call Moose Jaw home and because of the expansion of pilot training at 15 Wing and the need for pilot training air space, the Snowbirds will practice in the air space over our City of Moose Jaw-owned MJMAA venue east of the city.
The MJMAA venue is growing with new hangars and improvements since the completion of the expanded runway and further development is anticipated in the coming years.
Presently, private pilot training is offered at the MJMAA and there is plenty of potential for the development of aircraft mechanics training in cooperation with Sask. Polytechnic or other post-secondary institutions and partners.
How would I bring all of this to fruition? By being a strong, consistent, capable leader who knows how to work collaboratively with others to achieve success.
Why are you the best person for this role?
I have proven over a three-year term as your mayor that I can get the job done. I have dealt effectively with a multitude of problems over this term while being as transparent as possible, maintaining confidentiality only when required. I have returned your calls and emails, and I will continue to do that during the next four years.
I am approachable, open, and honest. If you want an audience with me, the mayor, simply call my office and my administrative assistant will set up a time. I want only the best for Moose Jaw!
What are your top skills/qualities/attributes?
Being a good listener to learn and understand.
As a leader, I stay calm, confident, and in control, bringing reason and logic to decision-making, while some others lose control and have knee-jerk reactions.
I have experience under pressure from my experience as a soldier, my experience as an athlete, my experience as a coach, and my experience as a mediator and an arbitrator, staying calm, making rational decisions, and developing and executing effective plans when all around is chaos.
When I became mayor, we were in a pandemic, and we all remember what that entailed. We wore masks, we missed our exercise and our favourite things to do, we gained weight, we were miserable, and the price of everything went up. COVID-19 meant that everything we buy went up, sometimes to unreasonable levels and for no apparent reason.
That meant the city had even more issues than we as individuals had. There were tough decisions to make, changes were necessary for our city to survive.
As the leader of council, I kept council focused on the important decisions we had to make, and I worked closely with our administration as we weathered the pandemic storm.
In the middle of my term, the city manager retired, leaving us with an administrative leadership void. I played an important role in securing a head-hunter and working with council, we were able to hire a great new city manager and then daily, I worked with our new city manager to start to address the cultural change that we needed at city hall, the changes you are seeing today.
My strength as mayor is, regardless of what the problem is, or how difficult it is, I continue to function at an elevated level, getting things done and achieving results, all within a team environment.
Why should people vote for you?
Every day I work to make Moose Jaw better. I have established and maintained relationships with the premier, provincial cabinet ministers and their deputy ministers, our MLAs, our MP, SUMA, the city mayors, the Moose Jaw Chamber of Commerce, 15 Wing, the Snowbirds, the Moose Jaw Warriors, our First Nations and Metis partners, our business leaders and just about anyone who wants to visit or do business in our city.
I have and will continue to be available to our citizens and to our visitors.
If elected, during the next four years, I expect to continue to provide leadership for our city as we increase and broaden our tax base through the addition of agri-food processing, expanded resource development including potash, oil and gas, and potentially hydrogen, geothermal, solar, and wind energy generation.
I have promoted our city at every opportunity, and as we continue to grow our population, I want to have a hand in working with others to ensure that we prosper, while at the same time, we retain our collective vibe as Canada’s Most Notorious City, Moose Jaw!
