Roy Ludwig wants to be Estevan’s mayor for another four years.
Ludwig confirmed in an interview with the Mercury on Friday afternoon that he will seek a second term as mayor in the October civic election. Ludwig was elected as mayor in October 2012, as he received approximately 60 per cent of the vote to defeat Lynn Chipley and Jim Halladay.
Prior to becoming mayor, Ludwig had been a councillor for 18 years.
“I enjoyed my first term (as mayor), and it’s been great working with this council,” Ludwig said. “We’ve interacted very well together, and in our last term here, we’ve done some positive things for our community.”
The last four years have gone by very quickly, he said, and he attributes that to the amount of work council has undertaken, and to how much he has enjoyed the job.
Retirement hasn’t entered into his mind, either, even though he has been on council since 1994.
When this current council has had differences of opinion, Ludwig believes they have been able to move forward even when there isn’t consensus on an issue.
But there have been challenges, particularly when it comes to staffing. Council has let two city managers go in the past term, and they have experienced turnover with some of the other department heads and managers.
“Collectively … we have made these decisions and changes, and I feel this is a positive development for the City of Estevan, and I believe this is helping us turn the corner and move the city forward,” said Ludwig.
The city’s debt has also diminished during the past term. It was above $40 million at one point, but it is now around $32 million, and Ludwig said council is determined to continue to pay off the debt.
“We’re doing this at the same time as making needed changes to infrastructure with streets, and continuing with needed improvements to the parks,” said Ludwig. “It is a balancing act, but this council feels it’s very, very important to pay that debt down.”
Ludwig recognizes there are areas in town that need improvements, most notably King Street. Council is looking at resurfacing the arterial road in 2017 or 2018; they are also looking at adding a second eastbound lane for King Street between Bannatyne Avenue and Pine Avenue.
Other street repairs are needed in the city, and the water main replacement program may also resume.
“We’re starting to take a hard look at that, moving forward, where the worst areas are,” said Ludwig.
There are also a few areas of the city where the storm sewer is still going into the sanitary system. It’s a practice that was adopted by Estevan and other Saskatchewan cities prior to 1980 as a cost-cutting move. Ludwig believes now is the time to rectify that long-standing issue.
“At the time, they thought it would be fine to do that, but of course, we know nowadays that it’s simply not an acceptable practice,” said Ludwig.
The next council will also need to continue with improvements to pathways and parks. A five-year parks plan has been drafted.
The economic slowdown the community has experienced in the last two years, due to the sliding price of oil, has created challenges for the community, and Ludwig expects it will continue to pose problems for the city.
“It’s harder on everyone,” said Ludwig. “It’s harder on our … residents, it’s harder on council, and it’s harder on the provincial government and the federal government when times are tough. We’re in tougher economic times right now, and we have to weigh every decision with that in mind. We have to be financially responsible and spend our taxpayer dollars wisely.”
While the price of oil is starting to stabilize, he doubts there will be a significant surge in the near future.
Ludwig also noted the provincial government is struggling through their own economic issues due to the price of oil, and so they might not have as much money to dole out to municipalities.
He’s not sure if anyone will oppose him for mayor, but he would welcome a mayoral race.
“I understand that there are always people who feel they can do a better job,” said Ludwig. “There are always people who feel they want to put a different perspective on things, and I totally get that.
“So if we do have people in our community who feel we need more change than what they see happening, or if they feel maybe I’m past my prime, or past doing an effective job, then someone might oppose me.”
The civic election will take place on Oct. 26.
