By TERRY PUGH
Warman Mayor Gary Philipchuk is running for re-election this fall on a platform that focuses on community safety, infrastructure, civic services and recreation.
Investing in those key areas attracts residents and businesses and spurs economic development, according to Philipchuk.
“Having all those things makes our community an attractive location for people to live and work and raise a family,” said Philipchuk. “You need those amenities in order to attract investment by businesses.”
Philipchuk said over the past several years, the city has made large investments in basic infrastructure, including a lagoon expansion; and is currently building a second ice surface at the Warman Home Centre Communiplex. He believes those projects needed to happen, but also that they could be financed without over-burdening ratepayers.
“My goal is to keep property taxes at or below inflation,” said Philipchuk. “We’ve been able to do that, despite some cost over-runs on some of those projects because of unforeseen cost increases.
Philipchuk said he has always made himself available to residents, and will continue to do that if elected for another four-year term.
“As Mayor, I’ve tried to be very open and available,” said Philipchuk. “I have one phone number. I don’t have an office phone number where you just leave a message. I always carry my phone with me all the time.
“I have had some strange phone calls at times, but that’s okay. It doesn’t happen very often, and if someone is that frustrated with something that they feel they need to call up the mayor, then it’s my job to help solve their problem. A lot of the time I’m just guiding them on their options.”
Philipchuk said he encourages residents to communicate directly with him by email or text as well as by phone, so that he can help people find pathways to solutions.
He said the move in 2012 to 24/7 police coverage by the RCMP in the area through the merger of the Warman and Martensville detachments was positive, because it provided enough personnel to make it happen. But, he added, there are ongoing discussions about what that service will look like over the next few years.
“Warman is a very safe community because we have excellent police and fire protective services,” said Philipchuk, a veteran city councillor who has served the past four years in the Mayor’s chair. “But, we always want to build on that and expand our capacity as we grow. The current RCMP detachment building in Warman is old and undersized. We’re looking at a new building for the RCMP and discussing what that might look like with our regional partners.”
Philipchuk said his priorities also include ensuring the city’s basic infrastructure, including streets, waterlines and storm water drainage systems, are expanded and maintained too keep pace with growth. The same thing applies to public services, he added, noting snow removal is becoming more challenging as the number of streets increases annually.
He said the rink expansion has been on the table for several years. The city had to make a decision to shoulder the cost on its own after potential infrastructure grant funding from senior levels of government never materialized, he added.
“We couldn’t kick it down the road for a future council to deal with,” said Philipchuk. “That wasn’t a realistic option. We had exhausted all our applications and had to make a decision. If we hadn’t made that choice, the cost by now would have been about $2 million more because costs have risen that much over the past couple years.”
He noted the city’s recreation levy of $75 per property, introduced in 2024, will rise to $150 in 2025. (Editor’s note: The story in this week’s print edition incorrectly stated the recreation levy would remain at $75 in 2025 and rise in 2026. The Gazette apologizes for the error.)
“I support the decision because we have to have good recreational amenities in order to have good quality of life for residents. With the additional ice surface it means we will once again be able to host local tournaments.”
Philipchuk said he intends to continue to press the provincial government to provide more accessible health care services for Warman.
“We have a meeting with the Minister of Health about health care in early September,” he said. “Our main goal is to increase the number of doctors and the availability of primary health care services. Having increased capacity in Warman will take some of the pressure off Saskatoon. We want to be part of the solution in those areas.”