Category Archives: Davidson

Davidson

High yields ensure farmers have good year

A cooler summer, more precise fertility measures, better overall farm management, improved equipment, wise fungicide use and timely rains have combined to create a very successful farming year for most people in this area.

Davidson farmer Rob Stone said this has been a good year and most people are pleased with their yields, but it needs to be remembered that farmers have worked very hard for these higher yields. He said this is probably the most money any individual farm has spent per acre on their crops this year and with the weather cooperating the result has been an above average crop.

“There are some crops that are approaching a top yield and some are definitely breaking the long-term average, so there is a trend for higher yields this year then there has been for the last five to 10 years,” said Stone. “Some crops (are) more so than others. It seems the cereals are more topping their average trend yields and crops like canola; overall more people are experiencing some success with their yields.

“I wouldn’t say they’re astronomically record high as far as the canola is concerned, (but) cereals probably. The cereals, overall there is a lot more people having yield success and if you look at the pulses and lentils and stuff like that there is some people that report extremely high yields.”

Stone said protein levels are lower than average with the bigger yield, but the increased investment in producer’s fertility management strategy has helped keep up protein levels along with the increased yield in hybrid spring wheat and durum.

There is “actually a situation where some people were experiencing too low of a protein in barley, which is very unusual because high protein barley is a problem,” he said.

Gord Willner, who farms west of Davidson, said this isn’t the biggest crop he’s ever had, but it is one of the better ones in a while. He said it’s hard to say the reason behind the good crop other than all the variables which “don’t always make sense” that go into farming seemed to come together this year.

“We’re putting grain in our barn,” said Willner, noting the increased volume has created problems with storage space on the farm. “We’ve got a shop (and) we’re going to put grain in there. Then we’ll probably put the last of our feed barley on the ground.”

Willner said all his canola is already priced and contracted due to the possibility of the price going down. He said none of the wheat has been priced, but now that he knows the grade of it that work is beginning.

“Actually I started doing it up the other day for our spring wheat,” he said. “Then the only other thing we have is flax and I’m going to contract it pretty quick as well for a winter delivery.”

To read more please see the October 7 print edition of The Davidson Leader.

Davidson, featured

Town cooks up ideas to solve kitchen dilemma

Elected officials and staff with the Town of Davidson are trying to find a solution to an unhappy volunteer core and dissatisfied customer base at the Communiplex kitchen and lounge.

In an attempt to solve this problem the town has been trying to hire a kitchen/lounge manager for the rink, but as yet no one has come forward and applied for the position. A posting for the full-time job ended Sept. 20, but town officials still hold out hope that it will be filled before the rink opens for the skating season around the middle of October.

Trevor Ouellette, recreation director for the town, said he wants a kitchen/lounge manager hired as soon as possible, with the first hockey game to be played at the rink on Oct. 26 as the drop point. He said the recreation board met last Wednesday with a group of kitchen and lounge volunteers to try and come up with ideas on how to run the restaurant differently this winter in case no one does come forward by this time.

“As a town we know that the system in place would probably need to change, not that it was broken, it’s just ‘is this the best way to operate’,” said Ouellette. We’re “listening to volunteer feedback (about) what we can do.”

Several volunteers have raised numerous concerns with how the rink kitchen and lounge is run and also what is expected of them. They cite a lack of organization, an unrealistic expectation on the volunteers, an unfair system where many volunteers on the call list refuse to work their shifts and having the volunteers responsible for the cooking of food as ongoing problems at the rink.

Another concern for some volunteers is the town has begun to rent the rink out to teams from Saskatoon and Regina for their tournaments, but Davidson volunteers are still asked to run the kitchen and lounge on these days even though their kids aren’t involved in the play. They say helping out the rink is a priority for them, so they come out and work those shifts as well, but feel they shouldn’t have to on those days and it might be a good idea to just lease out the kitchen and lounge to a business and let them take it over if these events are going to become more commonplace.

Jason Shaw, a Davidson councillor and recreation board member, said the town can’t find anyone who wants to lease or rent the kitchen and lounge or a kitchen/lounge manager because of the unstable rink schedule and the big commitment involved with being tied to the restaurant from October to April. He said another problem is they would have to raise fees if they were to lease it out, which could stop some kids from playing hockey.

Fees “are going up for everybody and we’re going to try and keep them moving up a little bit, but that’s the dilemma,” said Shaw. “You don’t want to have them too high. That is the trade off with keeping fees low, (it’s) people volunteering in the kitchen. If you go to Regina or Saskatoon you pay quite a bit more, but they’re not doing any volunteer hours.

“The fees for the rink are only part of what it cost you to have a kid play hockey now. With the younger age group they play in a Moose Jaw league (and) people are driving in there, so you don’t want to price it too high that kids aren’t playing hockey.”

To read more please see the Sept. 30 print edition of The Davidson Leader.

Davidson

Davidson School extends welcome to seven new interns

The teacher population at Davidson School is up by half this fall after an unusually high number of interns took postings in classrooms throughout the school.

Interns Caitlin McCarthy, Alicia Hicks, Jennifer Gelleta, Randi Bender, Erin Toner, Kelsey Pragnell and Erin Palmier are presently immersing themselves in school life as they learn the ins and outs of teaching their various classes. The University of Regina and University of Saskatchewan education students are posted in one of the classes of Kindergarten, grades 2, 3 and 5 and the senior subjects of science and history, math and English.

“It’s been great so far,” said Pragnell, 22, who is working with teacher Laura Willner in the Grade 2 class. “I’ve been doing music for a while now with the Grade 2s. We’ve been doing rhythm and pitch. (Last Wednesday we started) to do rhythm sticks and then we’re doing some drums coming up right away. Then I have a little mini health unit and I’m going to be doing a few more health and science units coming up really quick.”

Like the other six interns, Pragnell is taking the first few weeks of her posting to watch, learn, ask questions and get to know the kids. The education students would then start to take over some classes before eventually moving into teaching the kids full-time for three weeks starting Nov. 10.

During this full-time teaching duty the interns’ cooperating teachers will complete an evaluation on them to help them improve their methods. The internship ends in December when the university students head back to their respective schools to complete their final year of their education degrees.

Toner, a 20-year-old University of Regina Faculty of Education student, said she is picking up a subject a week from Grade 3 teacher Chantal Walker Morey, but has been mainly teaching science so far. She said it’s been really easy to get to know the staff and students at Davidson School due to the small school atmosphere and welcoming spirit.

“Especially in the elementary school you know almost all of the kids already,” said Toner. “You’re seeing them when you’re out on supervision, you’re seeing them when you’re doing buses (and) you’re seeing them in the hallways. Then the staff, we had a week where we were just doing staff stuff where we had meetings, so you really got to know the staff then.”

Davidson School vice principal Cathy Rettger said the school usually gets a maximum of three interns each fall, so having seven new faces come into the school this year has been a bit different. She said the school is centrally located between Regina and Saskatoon and has a good reputation among previous interns, so that is why the school seems to be a popular destination for education students.

To read more please see the Sept. 30 print edition of The Davidson Leader.

Davidson, featured

Ratepayer concerned over Grant St. tree removal

A concerned ratepayer sat down at the council table last Tuesday during the town leaders’ monthly meeting to express her concerns about the removal of a tree on Grant Street.

Jeannie Allan said she chose to address council with her concerns because she was disappointed to see a “nice healthy tree” taken down on her street when there was no grounds for its removal. She said if this tree came down there is also a concern about whether town council might be thinking of removing more trees as well.

“Really what I wanted to come up with is a comprehensive plan with some policies in place regarding some of the trees in town, so that we protect some of the big trees and not take them down,” said Allan, who spoke to council solely on her own behalf. “I don’t want to see the existing trees being taken down unless they are diseased.”

Allan said the town has done a “good job” planting boulevard trees, but there are many more streets that need large canopy trees. She said there are better choices than poplars.

“I understand that the poplars were not the best choice back 40 years ago when they were planted, but just because they were planted in the wrong spot and now they have matured and are lifting the sidewalk, the damage is already done,” she said. “Taking that tree down to me did not solve anything because the sidewalk is still lifted whether the tree is there or not and the roots in the lawn will be there for a very long time. That problem is not solved either.

“I believe public trees should not be removed until a certified arborist examines the trees and makes the educated decision. If the town is worried about tree roots in the sewer system than then it should be the sewer pipes that are repaired.”

Allan said roots only cause damage to the sewer lines that are old and leaking and if the roots don’t find moisture they do no damage. She said money should be spent on repairing sewer lines and not sidewalks or the expense of removing healthy trees.

The large poplar tree in question was located on town property on Grant Street between Second Street and Government Road and was removed by Davidson public works employees the week of Sept. 9 after council made a motion at their Aug. 20 meeting to look at trees that are affecting infrastructure in the town.

Clayton Schneider, mayor of Davidson, said it was not a council decision to take down the tree and he is unhappy that it was removed in the way it was, but it is likely the tree would have eventually come down anyways. He said the motion at the Aug. 20 meeting was solely to determine which trees are damaging streets and sidewalks in town and no action was supposed to be taken on any of them yet.

“Someone jumped the gun on it,” said Schneider, noting the plan was to remove all the problem trees in one shot and not take them down haphazardly. “It was supposed to be decided at (the Sept. 17) meeting, but with that said it was damaging infrastructure so the decision would have probably been the same.”

To read more please see the Sept. 23 print edition of The Davidson Leader.

Davidson

Tennent resigns from council

Here we go again.

Voters in Davidson will be heading to the polls this fall to elect a new town councillor for the second time since the general municipal election last October.

Logan Tennent announced his resignation as a town councillor effective Sept. 20 at the monthly council meeting last Tuesday. Tennent said he chose to resign from council because he wants to apply for the vacant Davidson town foreman position.

“I very much enjoyed my time on council and I’m very grateful for the support from the taxpayers, especially the 242 who voted for me,” said Tennent. “This foreman opportunity is something that I can’t (pass up). I have to apply for this job just because it is the best (opportunity) for me and for my growing family. If council is something I have to resign from in order to do that, that is something I am willing to do.”

No date has been set for the call for nominations for a councillor. If more than one person applies for the position, a byelection would be held. A date for the byelection has also not been set.

To run for the vacant councillor position, a candidate has to have lived in Davidson for at least three months and in Saskatchewan for six months before the byelection date. A candidate must also be 18 years of age and a Canadian citizen.

To nominate a candidate, a person must own land in town, but doesn’t actually have to live here. Five electors must sign the nomination form.

Clayton Schneider, mayor of Davidson, said Tennent would be “missed” around the table as he was a productive councillor, but his departure should not interfere with current town business.

“Everything will go on as usual,” said Schneider. “There will be a byelection and we’ll see who applies.”

Davidson

Davidson Swimming Pool committee wins $25,000 towards new pool and Rider Pride party

The new Davidson Swimming Pool committee won $25,000 towards the construction of a new pool Sept. 14 from the Richardson Pioneer Rider Nation Community Celebration contest and is hosting a $10,000 party this Sunday to celebrate.

The Pool committee’s bid came in third place out of 29 total submissions to the contest thus securing the prize. Davidson finished behind Dalmeny, who took first place and $50,000 towards their bid for a playground, soccer pitch and picnic area for the town, and Moosomin, who won $25,000 for the construction of a football field and upgrades to their communiplex.

The contest challenged each of the submissions to show their passion for local health and wellness initiatives as well as their spirit for the 101st Grey Cup Festival.

New Davidson Swimming Pool committee member Laura Williams said they submitted a video and essay detailing their project, community, Rider pride and Grey Cup spirit in the middle of July. The group found out they made the top-eight Aug. 17, when an on-line voting period began to determine the top-three winning bids.

“It was about three weeks to vote and that is when we got tons of community support and people really on board with the voting to get us into the top-three,” said Williams. “It’s been fantastic how many people were sending it on to friends and family elsewhere to get them voting for us as well.”

Williams said they didn’t know they had a winning bid until they were presented with the third-place prize during a halftime show at the Roughriders 31-29 loss to the Toronto Argonauts Sept. 14 at Mosaic Stadium. She said they were also given $10,000 to host a Richardson Pioneer Rider Nation Celebration party in Davidson this Sunday to coincide with the Riders game against the Alouettes in Montreal.

“Part of what Richardson (Pioneer) wanted was for us to provide entertainment, food (and) beverages for everyone,” she said. “We’ll have a pancake breakfast and a barbecue and show the game along with some entertainment. There’ll be lots of fun things for the kids. Gainer is coming (and) some Rider alumni.”

The event will take place at the Davidson curling rink and be free to attend, but there will be a cost for the food and beverages, said Williams. The pancake breakfast starts at 9 a.m. and the festivities would go on until people are ready to go home.

“We’re hoping for a really big turnout.”