Disclaimer. The content shared in this blog reflects my personal thoughts and perspectives as your mayor. It does not represent the official position of the Town of Rouleau or the town council. While I’ll do my best to keep you informed and provide helpful insights, please know that I’m not speaking on behalf of council, administration, or the municipality.
Greetings Rouleau Residents!
Happy New Year! I hope you had a wonderful holiday season and are ready to take on 2026 with positive energy and enthusiasm.
It’s been several weeks since my last update, and I want to start by apologizing for the delay. Things have been busy behind the scenes, but staying connected with you is always a priority. Thank you for your patience, I’m happy to add a new post to the blog today and share some information, and going forward will do my best to add new posts more frequently.
We are thrilled to add Ashley Horan to our Town Council. Ashley brings a wealth of knowledge and experience related to the tough issues facing our community. I’ve sat with her on Council in the past and appreciate her passion and insights. Please join me in congratulating Ashley on her new role.
Mayor Office Hours Resuming
After a short hiatus, I will resume offering Mayor’s Office Hours at least once a month at Town Hall (potentially more, depending on demand). This is an opportunity to connect in person and discuss any questions or concerns you may have. Important: These sessions are for conversation only, any actionable requests must go to the full Council for consideration.
Office hours will resume in February, scheduled for selected Friday afternoons. Stay tuned for exact dates!
New Website Launching Soon
Our community website has been due for an upgrade, and I’m excited to share that a brand-new, modernized website is almost ready! This project has been in the works for several months, and we expect to launch in February. The new site will make it easier to access meeting minutes, agendas, and other resources. Thank you for your feedback, and patience as we put the finishing touches on the website before it goes live.
Disclaimer. The content shared in this blog reflects my personal thoughts and perspectives as your mayor. It does not represent the official position of the Town of Rouleau or the town council. While I’ll do my best to keep you informed and provide helpful insights, please know that I’m not speaking on behalf of council, administration, or the municipality.
Greetings Rouleau Residents!
Happy Thanksgiving to all! I hope you were able to enjoy some time with friends and family this weekend. For me, it was a good opportunity to slow down and reflect on the many things I’m thankful for.
I was especially grateful for the slower pace, as the past several weeks have felt like a whirlwind. Between three kids playing volleyball (meaning three out-of-town tournaments every weekend), a major three-week turnaround event at work, and getting the kids back into the rhythm of school, life has been full throttle. Add to that the seasonal tasks of packing up the lake and winterizing, it seems that any spare time has quickly disappeared.
This busy stretch has meant fewer blog posts than I’d like, so when I saw a bit of downtime on this holiday Monday, I knew I had to jump on it and get a post out there! Here are a few updates I’d like to share:
Topics Covered in This Post:
Disposable Land
Taxes: New Structure
New Councillor Opportunity
Rouleau Resident Highlight – Mike McQueen
August 2025 Meeting Minutes
Disposable Land
One of this council’s initiatives has been reconciling town-owned property and making it available for purchase to interested residents. This was a significant undertaking, but we successfully posted a comprehensive list and proceeded with transactions after the two-week posting period, which began on September 2nd.
In total, we listed 18 available lots at a fair market rate of $50 per frontage street foot. We’re pleased to report that several lots were sold through this process, this is a great step forward in supporting growth and development in Rouleau.
Revised Tax Structure
Many of you have likely noticed changes in how taxes are assessed in Rouleau. In 2025, we faced an unexpected challenge with significant negative shifts in SAMA assessments, which strained our previous tax structure.
While we’d love to reduce taxes across the board, the reality is that rising costs for goods and services directly impact our ability to maintain town operations. Council met multiple times, reviewed over a dozen scenarios, and consulted experienced administrators for guidance. The consistent feedback was clear: our base tax rate was too low to sustain long-term needs.
We’ve since increased the base tax rate to help narrow the gap between properties that were previously paying very low taxes and those paying significantly more. Higher-valued properties are still taxed at higher rates, but this adjustment helps distribute the tax burden more equitably across all residents.
Additionally, we introduced a tax on additional adjoined lots at a rate of $200 (based on an $1800 base with a $1600 abatement).
I understand there are mixed opinions on this approach. I’ve heard both positive and negative feedback and appreciate all of it. I also want to apologize for the confusion on the tax notices, where the additional lot rates were mistakenly listed as arrears. Council has discussed this and agrees that communication during the rollout could have been better.
New Councillor Opportunity
We currently have an open seat on council and will be holding a by-election in the near future. If you’re interested in serving your community, I encourage you to consider putting your name forward. We’re a diverse group and always welcome new perspectives. Stay tuned for more details on the by-election and the nomination process.
Rouleau Resident Highlight – Mike McQueen
I’m excited to introduce a new feature on the blog: Rouleau Resident Highlights. We have so many great people in our community, and I’d love to use this space to share more about them, with their permission, of course!
This month, we’re featuring Mike McQueen:
Q: How long have you lived in Rouleau? A: 7.5 years (since March 2018)
Q: Tell us a bit about your family. A: Myself, my 7-year-old son Kenny, and my 69-year-old father.
Q: What brought you to Rouleau? A: Cost of housing. I partied out here in my younger days and loved the quietness of a small town while still being close to the city. I wanted to set down roots for my son in a safe, peaceful place.
Q: Where did you grow up? A: I grew up in the suburbs of Montreal until I was 12. It was great — the ’90s were a fun time! I moved to Regina in 1999 and loved the change of pace and friendliness.
Q: Something people might be surprised to learn about you? A: All four of us — my parents, brother, and I — are left-handed!
Q: Hobbies or interests? A: Work takes up most of my time, but I’m passionate about what I do. I’ve recently picked up golf again now that I’m a little older and more patient.
Q: What do you love most about living in Rouleau? A: Kids can be kids and enjoy their freedom. The community is welcoming and it’s easy to get involved.
Q: Are you involved in any local groups or volunteer work? A: I’ve been a member of the fire department for 7 years. I enjoy being in the “hot zone” and helping however I can.
Q: What do you do for work? A: I’m a carpenter and supervisor for a Moose Jaw-based home builder.
Q: A personal or professional achievement you’re proud of? A: Earning my Red Seal in carpentry (2013), becoming a father (2018), and continuing to earn certifications with the fire department.
Q: Describe Rouleau in three words. A: Peaceful, inviting, home.
Q: If you could invite anyone (past or present) to visit Rouleau, who would it be and why? A: My mom. I miss sitting around the living room or backyard talking about everything and nothing.
Q: Hopes for the future of Rouleau? A: I’d love to see more young families escape the city and call Rouleau home.
Q: Anything you’d like to see more of in our community? A: I’d like to start a junior firefighter program at the FD — help youth earn volunteer hours, see young faces join our ranks, and keep the department strong.
First off, I want to extend my apologies for the delay in posting this update. Like many of you, the last month has felt like a whirlwind – between kids’ activities ramping up and a demanding schedule at my primary job, time has been tight. I appreciate your patience and understanding.
Despite the busy days, I remain committed to keeping our community informed and engaged. Further below you will find the agenda for tonight’s September Town Council Meeting. Once August minutes are approved and made available, I will post those as well.
Further to this, I plan on publishing an additional blog post in the coming days to address updates and insights on the following topics:
Find the approved meeting minutes for the July 2025 Rouleau Town Council meeting attached. If there are any discrepancies between this posted copy and the one at the town office, the copy at the town office will be considered correct.
Here are the June 2025 minutes, approved at the July 2025 meeting. Although I believe these to be correct and accurate, I must note that if there is any difference between these minutes and the ones at the office, the office version will take precedence.
As Mayor of Rouleau, I’m really excited to launch this blog in order to increase communication and promote convenience and transparency between citizens and Town Council. This is important to me. Fifteen years ago my wife Brigitte and I made the choice to relocate from Regina to Rouleau. At the core of this decision was the quality of life that small town living provides. We wanted our children to benefit from all that a rural school offers and I have definitely enjoyed engaging with our youth as their Bantam League volleyball coach. During the day, I work as a Professional Engineer for Mosaic Potash at Belle Plaine. During the Summer seasons, you’ll typically find us camping at Dunnet Regional Park and spending time with our friends and family. I stepped into the position of Mayor in the fall of 2024 because I wanted to be directly involved with ensuring Rouleau would be well positioned long-term to sustain the quality of life that attracted my family here 15 years ago.
This past year, I opened the door for residents to talk with me about life in Rouleau by holding Office Hours. Through this I have had the opportunity to connect with many residents to discuss a variety of inquiries and topics. This also helped reinforce for me that not everyone chooses to engage in the various social media platforms and would like the website to be the main communication hub. Council recognizes this need and we have partnered with the RM to launch a new site. Meanwhile, this blog will serve as a platform to help keep residents informed and engaged until the new site is up and running. I’ll be using this space to share updates, highlight community initiatives, and provide insights into the decisions, developments and discussions shaping Rouleau. Whether it’s upcoming events, infrastructure projects, or opportunities to get involved, my goal is to make communication and information sharing more convenient and accessible for everyone.
Before we dive into any town related topics, I’d like to offer a quick Disclaimer. The content shared in this blog reflects my personal thoughts and perspectives as your mayor. It does not represent the official position of the Town of Rouleau or the town council. While I’ll do my best to keep you informed and provide helpful insights, please know that I’m not speaking on behalf of council, administration, or the municipality.
I’d like to start with a couple of Staff updates just to ensure everyone is up to speed with current town personnel. Just prior to when this new council was elected 10 months ago, and as a result of Guy LaGrandeur’s retirement, the Town had hired Candice Zinn as the new Administrator for both the Town of Rouleau and the RM of Redburn . A few months later, long-time Administration Assistant, Kelly Duncan, also retired and Ashley Westgard was selected to do the huge job of filling Kelly’s shoes. There have been other staffing changes. The installation of our world class reverse osmosis water treatment facility necessitated hiring an extra staff member to maintain it. Craig Perkin is currently in this part-time role. Lastly, and most recently, Wayne Rumford was hired to replace Derek Nhyus as Town Foreman.
On other Town Business, it is worth noting that we are in the process of finalizing our Town Budget. Recently, the SAMA assessments came in, which sparked some important conversations around some potential budget reform. Over the past five years, the cost of operating the town has steadily increased, and we’re working hard to balance those rising expenses with responsible financial planning. One of our key focuses this year is to be more proactive in planning for future infrastructure upkeep and maintenance. By investing wisely today, we aim to ensure Rouleau remains a safe, functional, and vibrant community for years to come. We are working on the final details of this budget and plan to have tax cards mailed out shortly.
Another important topic currently under discussion is our Water Ratesand billing structure. A few years ago, we invested in a new water treatment plant, and as it continues to operate, we continue to gain a better understanding of its operating costs and future capital needs. As part of this process, we’re reviewing our billing structure and considering adjusting the limits on the current tiered system to better align with the required operating costs. This change would better reflect a “pay for use” approach, encouraging more mindful water consumption while aligning us with similar communities in our region. We believe this structure will help ensure the long-term sustainability of our water system while remaining fair and transparent for all residents.
Our next Town Council meeting is scheduled for tonight (August 11) where these topics, amongst others, will be discussed. The draft agenda (yet to be adopted) is attached below:
As this Blog continues to evolve, I’d like to lean into some other interesting and neat content that may be of interest. Some ideas include:
Resident profiles – to help get to know each other a little better (voluntary basis)
Calendar of events going on throughout the community
Bylaw highlights and awareness
Seasonal or Monthly themed topics (snow removal, spring run-off, etc.)
School or local sporting info/news
I am open to feedback or suggestions to keep this blog vibrant and valuable to the residents of Rouleau. I can be contacted at RouleauMayor@gmail.com.
Thanks for taking the time to read this debut posting.
Mayor of Rouleau 