Sidewalks set to be improved

Posted on October 27, 2025 by Ryan Dahlman

By Marcus Day

marcus@maplecreeknews.com

Walkers in Maple Creek could soon be more confident of their footing.

Work is to be carried out on sidewalks seen as potentially hazardous, posing a risk of trips and injuries.

At its October 8 meeting, Maple Creek Town Council supported the project, while will see Medicine Hat-based Contract SafeSidewalks Canada (SSC) perform grinding of “priority” sidewalk areas.

The initial work will cost up to $35,000, and is scheduled to start this week. Money left over will be put in reserve to complete grinding and sidewalk replacement in 2026.

Council considered a report on sidewalk maintenance from Andrew Stevenson, interim director of operations.

In it, Stevenson said all north-south sidewalks had been assessed and well over 200 spots ranked Category 1, or priority, for trips and liability hazards.

“These hazards pose a risk to the Town from an insurance/liability perspective. SafeSidewalks Canada (Medicine Hat) can now be in Town next week to start work.

“Due to our late contact with contractors, no other could fit us in their schedule for 2025.”

Stevenson said the contractor had previously done the same work for the Town.

He added that SSC can perform four days initially, and perhaps complete more in late October if the weather holds.

The sidewalk budget, according to the report, exceeds $160,000.

“Focus will be on high foot-traffic areas, Town-owned buildings, places of worship and gathering, and highest risk.”

The report said the municipality faced potential liability risks from personal injury if the work is not completed or put off until 2026.

Councillor Tina Cresswell said she was glad to see action being taken on sidewalks.

“I have been stopped more than once by people talking about uneven sidewalks, and we have not really seen sidewalks ground down for a long time. And some of the sidewalk damage is flood damage from many, many years ago.

“I note that the first block of Aspen (Street) is very bad on the west hand side. It’s tipped, and it’s amazing more people don’t fall.”

Councillor Len Barkman believed the unspecified “high foot-traffic areas” in the report must include downtown, where there had been falls.

“I’m glad to see this. You know, at least we are dealing with it, because it is definitely a liability risk,” he said. “We need to do what we can to try to avoid that.”

Councillor Betty Abbott said she would be interested to know which sidewalks would be addressed.

“If he’s got a map, it would be interesting for us to see.”