Highlights from the January 29 meeting of Estevan City Council:

*EMO coordinator Helen Fornwald discussed a disaster management conference that she recently attended. Former New Orleans mayor Ray Nagin was a speaker, and he discussed how the city responded to Hurricane Katrina in 2005, and the changes the city made to its disaster response plan. Fornwald said Estevan is looking at how they can respond to disasters differently in the future, and how they can make greater use of social media.

*Jayden Dayman was sworn-in as the new student-at-large. Dayman, a Grade 12 student at the Estevan Comprehensive School, will remain with Council until the end of the school year. He'll serve as a voice for students and young people in the community.

*Council ratified an agreement with CDN Ltd. for the outdoor and in-venue digital signs for Spectra Place and the Leisure Centre. The City will receive 20 per cent of the advertising revenue. There will be some restrictions on what CDN can display on the signs.

*Southeast Tree Care was awarded a herbicide tender for three years, with a two-year option. Leisure Services spends about $6,500 a year on weed control.

*Council accepted a recommendation from events manager Garth Forster that future requests for free usage of City facilities, equipment or services be denied. The City receives a number of requests from non-profits each year for free use of Spectra Place, the Civic Auditorium and the Lignite Miners Centre.

*Rocky Mountain Phoenix in Abbotsford, B.C., was awarded two hazardous materials equipment tenders for Fire and Rescue Services: four 95-gallon drum overpacks for $1,584.07, and 200 spill socks for $2,094.75.

*A control structure for the new reservoir will be purchased for $134,000. It was more expensive than the other control system option presented, but Council believes that it will result in long-term cost savings.

*Manager Kevin Sutter supplied the year-end reports for the water treatment plant and the waste water treatment plant. Sutter recapped the accomplishments from the past 12 months, and the projects that were completed. Trihalomethanes remain an issue for Estevan's drinking water, so they are looking to draw the water from Rafferty Dam, where the THMs won't be as much of an issue.

*The final building permit report for 2012 showed there were 111 permits issued, with a total value of $26.67 million. Both numbers are down from 2011, when there were 139 units worth $40.6 million. Single-family, multi-family, commercial and industrial permits were all down last year.

*Council approved Trimount Development's plan for Phase 3B of the Dominion Heights subdivision. Eight four-unit condo townhouses will be constructed in the subdivision, and a 1.577 municipal reserve parcel that will be used for greenspace.

*A four-plex will be constructed at 801 Fourth Street that will offer rental properties. Currently a single-family house is on that site.

*First reading was given to a bylaw that will rezone a property in the 600 block of Third Street into a four-unit, two-storey rental property.