ESTEVAN — Estevan city council tabled a request to use a vacant lot at the intersection of Fifth Street and 13th Avenue for U-Haul trailers.
Brandon Geerts with the LB Liquor Store told council at the May 12 meeting that the business started renting out U-Haul trucks and trailers as a supplementary aspect of the business to help with the delivery of alcohol. The units were parked near their building at the Estevan Market Mall.
"We quickly learned that there was a huge need for this service. There's only one other U-Haul neighbourhood dealer in Estevan," said Geerts.
In four weeks, they received over 40 inquiries and 20 rentals for U-Hauls, and it became an important part of their business. But according to Geerts, the mall's owner was not onside with having that many units in that location, so they worked with U-Haul to have them removed.
He later added the mall was initially OK with having a few units at the site, which was LB's original intention, but the volume of demand in a non-peak season far exceeded expectations.
The trailers have been moved to a storage business in Estevan that has limited hours. They want to have the U-Hauls downtown and use some stalls in one of the two vacant lots. The LB Liquor Store has an express location in the 1200-block of Fourth Street.
Coun. Shelly Veroba said she noticed the U-Hauls were parked at the mall and didn't think it was a great look for that location. She questioned if it would look great downtown close to the ongoing revitalization project.
"I think it's a great business for Estevan, so I think I would personally like us to work with you to try to find a suitable location. So, would it be possible if you still rent them from either one of your locations, but then have them go to another location to pick up your vehicle?"
Geerts replied that for liability reasons, the U-Haul dealer has to hook up the trailer to the vehicle.
"It's not really viable to have our staff driving over to a remote location with a customer," said Geerts.
Veroba said there's another location on Fifth Street that's available. Geerts said they're certainly open to working with the city on another location.
Geerts said they need at least six parking spots, but he would like to have 10.
Coun. Kirsten Walliser suggested meeting with the Downtown Business Association and the Business Improvement District about the matter.
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Council approved three proclamations at the meeting. The first was for Economic Development Week from May 11-17.
The next one was for the United Way Estevan's Day of Caring May 28. Volunteers will head out into the community and take care of projects. Event co-chair Wendy Gustafson said support from the city has made the Day of Caring very successful over the years. She added a Day of Caring is a good way to give back to the community that has supported the United Way's telethon so much over the years.
"It's a way we can go out into the community and do projects for people that aren't able to do these projects on their own. We have a lot of volunteers who come and do this; we can't obviously, on our own, as a board, do it."
They meet at the Estevan Alliance Church at 9 a.m. on May 28 and have projects that will be in the morning and/or the afternoon. Volunteers have planted items, raked lawns, painted fences and even washed ceilings.
There will be a barbecue at noon at the church, and Gustafson described it as a feel-good day.
The United Way also has sunshine baskets that started during COVID. Volunteers go to a house, say hello, give the resident(s) a gift and visit with them to remind them they live in a caring community.
Next, council approved a request from Stryx Dubowski with the Estevan LGBTQ+ and Allies Social Gathering for Pride Month for June. It would include raising the Progress Pride Flag from June 16-23 and lighting the water tower June 16.
Dubowski noted last year a pride group in Weyburn ran some events in Estevan, so Dubowksi thought something should be started in the Energy City. The Estevan group has had "tremendous" attendance each month. Positive benefits have come from such events and Dubowski praised the support group.
Dubowski said the group is designed to help others, but it has also helped Dubowski.
"Being able to be in community with other people who are just like me, who feel who scared or fearful of the community here, for one reason or another, whether it is based on a real, genuine threat, or if it is out of a social simple anxiety, we have been able to encourage each other to be authentic and be ourselves," Dubowski said.
The city also promoted the Clean Sweep campaign, which includes beautification initiatives May 20-23, and a free weekend at the landfill for city residents from May 24 and 25.
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The Black Grasshopper pub received a community event permit for its annual parking lot party on Sept. 6, running from 6 p.m.-2 a.m. There will be live music on a stage and picnic tables, and food and drinks will be available, all within a gated area.
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The monthly water quality report showed the city treated a total of 101,767,300 litres of water and pumped 98,358,800 litres into the distribution system in April. No water breaks were reported.
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Five building permits worth $837,088 were issued in April, bringing the total to seven for $1,147,088. One of the April permits was a single-family property for $450,000. Two were garages for $110,000 and two were classified as miscellaneous for $277,088.
