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Wednesday, April 2, 2025 Vol. 48, No. 13
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Viking Council calls special meeting Councillors respond to anonymous letter, new office location criticisms, survey results, policing issues Patricia Harcourt Editor
A heated special council meeting took place on Friday, March 28, dealing with public feedback on several issues causing community concern. The choosing of a space on Main Street for the relocation of the Viking Town Office, a survey that included negative feedback concerning council and a police presence during the meeting to keep the peace if necessary were all at play. The community survey left room for those responding to make comments which included negative statements from several concerning the mayor and two members of council who were unnamed. But Mayor Jamie Buttner and Councillors Dana Ewashko and Cindy Lefsrud offered replies to criticisms they felt targeted them. Added to the mix was a letter from “concerned citizens” regarding the actions of council and the mayor concerning the motion of intent to purchase the old “Java” building on main street and renovate it for new office space for the town. The letter inferred that certain parties on council were too close personally to the building’s owner and the decision to make that person the building contractor was misguided since the person did not have the qualifications necessary for the job. Ewashko stated that council should not discuss the letter as it was not signed, but was anonymous in nature. Clr. Lefsrud expressed her disappointment and “hurt” at the survey comments which she felt were aimed at her as the “gossipy” councillor, and other remarks. Buttner added that he has been working closely with Clr. Lefsrud, admitting she has been his “go to” for information. And Lefsrud said she has been aiming to relocate the office space to the downtown for the past couple of years, as she believes this is necessary. Councillor Judy Acres and Deputy Mayor Julianna Merta both felt the need to inform the public that they don’t feel they are “bullied” on council. This was in reply to an accusation in the survey
comments that council was being bullied. Mayor Buttner also spoke on this subject stating he did not bully anybody on council, as it seemed apparent that he felt the accusation had been levelled at him. But Acres also took the opportunity to say that, despite the letter’s anonymity, it should be addressed as it was a well written letter expressing valid concerns that should not be ignored. “I suggest this is a shot over the bow,” she said “if we don’t address it we’ll have a fire on our hands.” Both Ewashko and Buttner said the letter was not fair in its allusions regarding people involved in the building issue. But Acres disagreed: “I didn’t interpret it as a personal attack,” she said. And Merta said that regarding her time on council in the past year and a half, she did not feel bullied. Ewashko responded to another survey criticism that council is too secretive in its deliberations, going in closed session too often. “There is no secrecy,” he said, explaining that the Municipal Government Act specifies council has to go in session for items like land and personnel, for instance. Merta said it was difficult to respond to an anonymous person or persons writing the letter, and Acres urged council to respond as a team. “Who do we respond to?” asked Ewashko, with Buttner saying he would like to speak to the person(s) who authored the letter in person. But he was also adamant in that he did not see the way he handles the role of mayor as changing, stating: “I am who I am and I absolutely refuse to change…It’s against my morals.” Councillor Lefsrud stated she has been “passionate for the last three years,” about getting a town office on main street. “I am sorry I brought this (building proposal) forward,” she added, noting it has “caused a lot of tension in the community.” Clr. Lefsrud then said she would like to “squash the motion and leave (the issue) for the next council,” following the fall elections, to deal with at that time. But Acres cautioned against abandoning the search
for a new downtown office space, and suggested perhaps looking for a location with a price higher than the proposed building of $50,000 but less than a more expensive property previously considered for $2.5 million. Lefsrud then made a motion to discuss the issue “and deal with it” by noon that day. The motion passed 4-1 with Ewashko voting against it. Following this, the mayor read the letter out loud and a full blown discussion ensued on its contents. “Where do we go from here,” asked Acres, “we’ve been asked to rethink this.” Council had passed a motion to purchase the former Java building, as it is commonly known, for $50,000 pending a building inspection. With that inspection now completed, Acres said it “told us a few things.” While Acres said the report was to be satisfactory before proceeding with the purchase, Ewashko said his original motion was to proceed with both the offer to purchase and the inspection at the same time. But discussion turned when Buttner made a motion to “squash the town office move entirely” which was not passed by council. Buttner pointed out that the current office space in the Viking Carena Complex was only 621 sq. ft. compared to 1,368 sq. ft. at the proposed building on main street. “I’m all about transparency and listening,” he said. “I am not in favour of giving it up entirely,” said Acres, of the initiative to find new town office quarters. “We should keep working on it,” she said, speaking in support of Clr. Lefsrud’s pursuit. Ewashko repeated that the letter in question “should be trashed because we can’t respond to the people who wrote it.” The same for the survey results as only 34 people responded which is only three per cent of the population of Viking. He said the former flower shop may lack some curb appeal and requires some renovation but “it’s a decent building.” Ewashko said that for these reasons, he was against the mayor’s motion, which was lost 3-2. Voting in Continued on Page 7