By Joel van der Veen

DILKE — Highway 354 near Dilke was the winner of a dubious honour last week.

The weather-beaten road took first place in CAA Saskatchewan’s annual list of the Top Ten Worst Roads in the province, as selected by online voters.

Pictures submitted to CAA’s website show a deteriorating road with multiple patches of bulging, crumbling pavement, some of them marked with small red diamond signs.

The provincial highway runs east of Dilke and then south towards Bethune, ending at its intersection with Highway 11.

Colleen Duesing, who serves as village administrator, confirmed that the road is in “seriously bad” shape, blaming its current condition on the heavy rain from last summer.

Duesing said that two “seriously heavy rain events” — one at the end of June, and the other on August 16 — last year took their toll on the road.

“Both times we received over six inches of rain,” she said. “It was flooded in about three or four areas.”

Detours were put in place until the water could be pumped away, but the ground remained heavily saturated, and when the ground froze during the winter, the water pushed upwards, resulting in cracked surfaces.

“It’s all weather-related,” said Duesing, adding that the highway sees heavy daily use from commuters and is also used by travellers heading to resort areas.

The village also has had to cope with severe watermain breaks this year. Excavators had to dig through nine feet of frozen ground to uncover the damaged mains.

Christine Niemczyk, CAA Saskatchewan’s director of corporate communications and public relations, said the Worst Roads campaign attracted interest and nominations from across the province.

More than 260 roads and highways, including residential streets, were nominated this year.

The criteria for a “worst road” include a state of general disrepair with potholes or cracks, poor signage or congestion, or if the road is too narrow for drivers, pedestrians and cyclists to share safely.

Asked whether the campaign had resulted in roads getting repaired or improved, Niemczyk said CAA doesn’t track that information, but noted that some roads — like Highway 155 near La Loche — have made the top 10 multiple years in a row.

“We’re offering a resource, a tool, a mechanism,” she said, explaining that the campaign helps to put a spotlight on road conditions in the province that are troublesome or even dangerous.

At the campaign’s end, she added, the survey results are made available to the appropriate government bodies.

All of the Top 10 roads from this year’s poll were provincial highways, including roads near Val Marie, Silton, Coronach, Bulyea, Gravelbourg, Springside, Vonda, Fife Lake and La Loche.

The campaign ran between March 25 and April 17 and attracted a total of 4,556 votes. CAA Saskatchewan has held the campaign annually since 2012.

By Joel van der Veen

DAVIDSON — The white-tailed deer was once so prolific in Saskatchewan that it was declared the official provincial animal, but a string of harsh winters has cut the species’ population in half.

Rob Tether, a wildlife ecologist based in Meadow Lake who works with the Saskatchewan Ministry of Environment’s fish and wildlife branch, confirmed the reports in an interview with The Davidson Leader last week.

“Three of the last five years, we’ve had severe winters,” said Tether, “and they’ve had a negative impact on our white-tailed deer population.”

He estimated that the population has declined by 50 per cent from long-term levels across most of the province, including the south-central region in which Davidson is situated.

While the past winter saw milder weather, he said, “it’s still going to take several mild winters for our deer population to rebound.”

Tether said the ministry does not take an actual population count, but relies on ground surveys taken in the animals’ known habitat at specific times of the year. This information is then used to determine general population trends for the species.

This is not the first time the ministry has noted a decline in the white-tailed deer population. Severe winter weather in 2006 resulted in a drop in numbers.

Going back further, Tether said that a string of harsh winters with heavy snowfall in the early 1980s also had a negative impact on the population, which took between four to six years to recover to previous levels.

Tether said the ministry has observed a similar trend in the population levels of the mule deer, although the decline has not been so severe.

A decline has also been noted in the populations of specific game bird species, including the sharp-tailed grouse and the grey partridge. Tether attributed that downturn both to the severe winters and changes in the birds’ habitats over the last decade or two.

Concerned about the white-tailed deer’s plight, the ministry has taken efforts to manage the remaining population and prevent what Tether called “over-harvesting.”

Last year, in an effort to combat the decline, the hunting season for the white-tailed deer was reduced.

In zones 22 and 23 — which cover much of the area directly between Regina and Saskatoon, with Highway 11 dividing the two zones — the season ran from Nov. 20 to Dec. 2.

Dates for this year’s hunting season will not be finalized until mid-May, Tether said, but the ministry is recommending a similarly reduced season for 2015 as well.

By Joel van der Veen

DAVIDSON — The Davidson School class of 2028 is off to a good start, if their numbers are any indication.

This fall will see the school welcome its largest Kindergarten class in at least a decade, principal Jason Low announced at a recent meeting.

Low told the school’s community council during its meeting Tuesday that a total of 29 students are expected to begin Kindergarten this fall.

Over the last decade, the number of students beginning Kindergarten in Davidson School each year has typically run in the high teens or low twenties, reaching a recent low of 12 students in 2009.

The influx of beginners will have a significant impact on the school’s enrolment numbers, especially given that just seven Davidson students will graduate from Grade 12 this spring.

Low said the jump in enrolment will be reflected in higher staffing levels, as the school will see an increase equivalent to one-and-a-half full-time positions.

Such a large group of Kindergarten students will likely necessitate a split class divided between two teachers, Low added.

Those present at the meeting welcomed this as positive news, even though the increased numbers will bring new challenges to the school.

For instance, Low said there has already been some confusion regarding how the new Kindergarten class would be split.

At a recent meeting with parents, he reported, the staff sought some input on how the split would be determined.

“We were trying to be diplomatic,” he said, but the discussion that followed indicated there were some misconceptions as to what factors would play a role.

“The school team is going to split the kids based on what’s best for the students, and that’s the end of it,” Low explained.

Teacher and council member Sandra Baldwin said the reaction wasn’t unusual, explaining, “It’s perfectly normal if parents are feeling that anxiety, especially if they’re new parents.”

Grade 2 teacher Laura Willner said the council would play an important public relations role, helping to ensure parents that the right choices would be made for their children.

“Schools are going to make a responsible decision and look at all the pieces,” she said. “For lack of a better word, we need to sell the idea.”

Looking ahead to the 2016-17 school year, the large Kindergarten class will also have an impact on Davidson’s playschool program.

Once the 29 students begin attending school full-time, Low said, Davidson School will no longer have room to accommodate the playschool program. Organizers have been informed and advised to start seeking other arrangements.

Along with the increased staffing numbers, Davidson School will welcome four interns from the University of Regina this fall.

The University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon has yet to confirm its interns with the school, so the total number could still increase.

By Joel van der Veen

DAVIDSON — Balloon animals, a custom playhouse and Macho Harris were among the highlights of this year’s Davidson Trade and Hobby Show, held in the hockey rink at the Communiplex on April 10 and 11.

The show, which is held every second year, drew around 45 vendors, and attracted an estimated 800 guests over the weekend.

“I think it went over well,” said Donna Bessey, the town’s community development co-ordinator, who was the show’s key organizer. “We had lots of exhibitors, and lots of people went through.”

Many of the exhibitors featured attractions in their booths to draw visitors, including Young’s Equipment, which brought in Saskatchewan Roughriders defensive back Macho Harris to sign autographs for two hours on Friday afternoon.

“He’s a great ambassador for the Riders,” said Rhonda Sarich, an administrative assistant for the dealership who organized their booth.

She said that Young’s Equipment had rented a booth in past years and expected they would do so again, saying, “I think it’s worthwhile . . . You’ve got to support your community.”

Another popular booth was operated by the Riverbend Co-op, offering cotton candy, a performer making balloon animals and other interactive features.

Tyler Alexander, who operates Davidson Home Audio Designs from his garage on First Street, set up a display of high-end audio equipment, as well as a selection of new pressings of both classic and recent releases on vinyl LPs.

Many guests also stopped by the Tomyn Construction booth to check out the custom playhouse that was donated to the Davidson Swimming Pool Committee and is featured as the top prize in their fundraising raffle.

While she appreciated all the vendors who took part in the show, Bessey said, “Those were the things that caught people’s eyes and really drew them in.”

Mayor Clayton Schneider said he was impressed with some of the innovative booths set up by vendors, adding, “I enjoyed this the most of all the trade shows I’ve ever attended.”

He also said he was especially pleased to see local businesses taking part, explaining, “We’re just so blessed to have people like that in our community . . . They are definitely what drives the community.”

Many of the exhibitors remarked that traffic was slow on Friday afternoon but picked up later in the evening, and especially on Saturday, as Manz’s Auctioneering Service held its spring consignment sale in the adjacent curling rink.

Having observed the same over the past few shows, Bessey said that in future years it might be a good idea to reduce the hours on the Friday afternoon.

The show featured about 25 local exhibitors and 20 visiting from communities such as Outlook, Prince Albert, Regina, Saskatoon, Moose Jaw, Wolseley and as far away as Fort Macleod, Alta.

“It would have been nice to have more of a presence from Davidson,” Bessey remarked, adding that the lack of accommodation available here is also a limiting factor in that regard.

Prior to last weekend, Bessey had said she suspected this could be the final year for the show, owing to the level of work involved and the few hands available. Traditionally, the show had been organized by the now-defunct Davidson and District Business Association.

“Since we’ve had the trade show, I’ve had a few businesses say, ‘We have to keep this going,’” she said, noting that the decision would be up to town council. “We’ll see where it goes from here.”