Latest news with #Goulden
CBC
14-04-2025
- Business
- CBC
Infrastructure funding top of mind among Sask. urban municipalities
Social Sharing The cost of improving and building new local infrastructure — and who will pay for it — has become one of the focuses at this year's annual conference of the Saskatchewan Urban Municipalities Association (SUMA). SUMA president Randy Goulden said the federal government's Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program (ICIP) is already tapped out. "I've talked to so many municipalities, our members, these last few days very concerned because the program, it's allocated fully. There's nothing else coming out and it is essential that we get some funding," Goulden told media during a scrum on on Monday. WATCH| SUMA airing Sask. cities' key election issues: Infrastructure, interprovincial trade: SUMA airing Sask. cities' key election issues 6 hours ago Duration 3:50 The Saskatchewan Urban Municipalities Association (SUMA) is meeting this week for its annual convention. Jean-Marc Nadeau, CEO of SUMA, joined CBC Radio's The Morning Edition to discuss what issues matter to civic leaders this federal election. Goulden stressed that municipalities are not asking for handouts. She said they want to be partners with the federal and provincial governments. "We need those things so that our communities can continue to be sustainable and provide the jobs and the industry and the commerce to make our province healthy, but also to feed everything that the province has to do around health and education," Goulden said. Provincial political leaders respond Held in Saskatoon, this year's SUMA conference featured appearances from Premier Scott Moe and Saskatchewan NDP Leader Carla Beck. Moe agreed with Goulden, saying a new infrastructure program should be a priority for whoever forms government after this month's federal election. Moe said inflation has affected every municipality in the province. "We will need a new long-term stable infrastructure funding model so that municipalities can plan, and so that they can cost-share not only with the federal government, but with the provincial levels of government as well," Moe said. Beck said she agrees that the federal government needs to lend a hand, but also accused the provincial government of a lack of action. Beck said she's spoken to many urban officials at SUMA and at other events and heard the same complaint — that the funding the province provides to municipalities isn't enough. "[Municipalities] are responsible for about 60 per cent of the infrastructure in this province, but they have access to only less than $0.10, about $0.08 for every dollar. That is simply not a workable situation without support from other levels of government," Beck said. Moe touted his government's "record increase" in municipal revenue sharing as proof of how serious it takes the issue of infrastructure. In its 2025/2026 budget, the province boosted municipal revenue sharing by $22 million to a total of $362 million. That was a 6.3 per cent increase from the previous year's budget. Moe said that money is disbursed to municipalities with no strings attached and that makes it a "one-of-a-kind program." Goulden thanked the province for that increase. The SUMA president also urged the province to meet with municipalities as soon as the federal election is over to "hit the ground running" and ensure all levels of government are on the same page.
Yahoo
07-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
West African village drumming brings dozens to Waukee library
WAUKEE, Iowa — Families partake in a lesson on West African village drumming at the Waukee library for Cookies and CultureALL. Dozens of people attended the session where sounds of West African drumming soon filled the air. Playing on authentic djembe hand-drums from the Ivory Coast in West Africa, the group learned about the role that the music plays in African culture. Cookies and CultureALL came to the Waukee Public Library several months ago as part of a combined effort with CULTUREALL. Each month an ambassador visits the library and shares something with the group. Past lessons include Hawaiian Hula Dancing, Guitars of Mexico, Peruvian Pan Flutes and more. WHO 13+ streaming app now available on Amazon Fire, Roku, and Apple TV CULTUREALL, an Urbandale non-profit, brings training, social studies programs, and more to Des Moines to help expand knowledge of other cultures and communities. 'It's really meaningful to our patrons to see both their cultures represented and then cultures they might be less familiar with, it's really a chance for representation and inclusion,' said Jenny Goulden. Goulden, a librarian at the Waukee Public Library, says this program not only brings pieces of culture, but helps bring the community together. 'It was really impressive to watch all ages get together at those different skills, we had 3- and 4-year-olds playing out actual rhythms with the help of their family and friends, and then we had some of our senior citizens here drumming a more complex beat,' said Goulden. Cookies and CultureALL is on hiatus while the summer reading program kicks off. The program is expected to pick back up in the fall, you can check for events here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
