The great potato debate continues. During the regular meeting of Meadow Lake city council held Monday (Feb. 23), councillor Marty Bishop shared concerns brought to his attention recently by the RM of Meadow Lake when it comes to the proposed potato giveaway being organized next month by the Métis Nation-Saskatchewan. “I’ve had some people from the RM contact me,” Bishop said. “I don’t normally take calls from the RM, but they are sponsors of our (InnovationPlex) fieldhouse, and they are very worried about the sale we are having for potatoes in there.”
At council’s previous meeting held Feb. 9, a motion was carried to waive the fees associated with the use and preparation of the InnovationPlex fieldhouse, in partnership either the Métis Nation-Saskatchewan, for the organization’s potato giveaway. While an exact date had not been determined at that time, the MN-S plans to hold the sale some time in March. “I’m reaching out to you with an exciting opportunity for a partnership that benefits our community,” stated Loretta King, MN-S Western Region 1 director in a recent letter to council. “We are planning a free potato giveaway in the month of March to take place in Meadow Lake to support local families and promote healthy eating. We believe partnering with the City of Meadow Lake would significantly enhance this event. Your involvement could include sponsoring a portion of the event by donating a venue to host the giveaway… Thank you for considering this partnership. I look forward to the possibility of working together to create a positive impact on our community and surrounding area.”
At the Feb. 9 meeting, mayor Merlin Seymour was opposed to the motion because of the potential damage he felt could be caused to the fieldhouse floor by using a skid steer to bring the close to 55,000 pounds of potatoes into the building. These were the same concerns Bishop said the RM has. When it was decided the fieldhouse would indeed be included in the overall Co-op Centre project, RM council agreed to pay one third of the net cost of adding the fieldhouse based on population ratios, which – according to its calculations – came to $2,379,020. “They are very, very worried about what the skid steer could do to the floor,” Bishop continued. “I told them we had some discussion about offloading the potatoes at the door and hauling them in with a pallet jack. I think they’re just really worried about the floor being damaged, and I told them we would likely address it this evening to make sure that doesn’t happen.” Seymour expanded on Bishop’s comments, reiterating the discussion that took place at council’s Feb. 9 meeting as well as further discussions that took place since. “I’m just not sure if Regan (parks and recreation manager Regan Beck) has done anything as of yet,” Seymour said. “I don’t know if it’s been decided or conveyed to the MN-S what our plans are.”
According to city manager Amanda Flasch, the fieldhouse was initially chosen as the location for the giveaway, but, if that needs to change, it would be a simple venue change. “I just feel, as was discussed at our last meeting, the Meadow Lake Civic Centre would be just as good of a place if not better to hold the potato giveaway,” Seymour said. “I’d rather see that than take a chance on damaging the fieldhouse floor. We will have some discussion with Regan to confirm what is happening.” Bishop asked, once a final decision is made, if it will be announced in some way so anyone with concerns – such as the RM – is aware of what is happening. “Once we have a concrete pan in place I will relay it to council,” Flasch said. Seymour said the onus would be on the MN-S to advertise where its event will be taking place. “If we decide to put it in the fieldhouse, however, it would be nice to let the ratepayers there know we’re looking after the floor,” Bishop said. “It would be nice to be able to put them at ease.”
When the notion of the potato giveaway was presented to council Feb. 9, city clerk Kaila Lefort said the intent behind the event is to support local families, promote healthy eating and eliminate approximately 55,000 pounds of potatoes from being disposed of in the landfill. “The potatoes are sourced from a food rescue program,” she noted.
