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| Geography |  The Rural Municipality (RM) of Gull Lake surrounds the Village of Tompkins and the Town of Gull Lake. Most of the surface texture is loam and silt loam. 16% of the area has 5% or more saline soils. The C.P.R. mainline and #1 highway cross through the southern townships of the municipality.
| | History | The municipality was once home to Assiniboine Cree and their enemies, the Blackfoot. The area was also a part of the Palliser Expedition which declared the area unfit for cultivation. It should be noted that much of the land is now profitable farmland. Once this RM was part of the '76 Ranch', and today ranching still remains as part of the basis for the economy.
The first recorded local self government was January 2, 1911 at a meeting of L.I.D. No.139. Mr.J.Ohlheiser was appointed as Chairman and E.E.Spackman as Secretary-Treasurer. In 1912 with Chairman T.J.Armstrong and Secretary-Treasurer C. Lochead, a meeting was held at the Gull Lake Fire Hall. At this time the first membership was paid for in the S.A.R.M. Meetings that followed were held at the Lyceum Theatre, except in the months of June and July when the meetings took place at Whipps Hall in Tompkins.
At 10:30 a.m., January 6,1913 the final meeting of L.I.D. No.139 was held and at 11:00 a.m. the first meeting of the RM of Gull Lake No. 139 was called to order. Councillor Whipps acted as Chairman and C. Lochead was hired as Secretary-Treasurer. Armstrong was elected as Reeve, and in April Oscar W. Howard became Secretary-Treasurer, a position he held until 1949. In October a motion was passed to pay F.W. Hinton $10.00 per month to rent the office opposite the Post Office.
In May 1914 at a meeting held in Whipps Hall in Tompkins the motion was passed to purchase a lot in Gull Lake and a suitable building was erected to hold a safe, and to house an office and Municipal Hall.
In 1920 the first adding machine was purchased at a price of $435.00 and in 1923 the first vault was built. 1930 marked another first as the first annual meeting was held in November.
In 1933 the Department of Municipal Affairs passed legislation that secretaries of the RM's were required to obtain a Provisional Certificate of Qualification.
At a meeting in September of 1938, the Reeve and Secretary-Treasurer were appointed a committee to arrange moving the Sydney Ward house to Gull Lake for an office. The old office was sold to R. O'Connor for $100.00.
During the mid fifties, for a period of about ten years, oil activity came to the area on a limited scale. Drilling increased in the mid sixties and continues today.
A joint meeting was held in August of 1968 with the RM of Gull Lake No. 139, RM of Carmichael No. 109 and the Town of Gull Lake. The decision was reached at this time to conduct a feasibility study into the possibility of a joint office. Eventually the town decided to remain in their own building. The two Rural Municipalities moved into their new shared premises on Lot 6, Block 65 in Gull Lake on January of 1970.
In 1913 the road system consisted of miles of prairie trails. The roads gradually improved with the assistance of jointly funded Provincial and Municipal road programs such as the Grid Road program, the Main Farm Access program, and the Super Grid system which led to the eventual formation of Municipal Maintenance Areas. The RM's of Gull Lake, Carmichael, and Webb formed Maintenance Area No. 1, the first in the Province.
The RM of Gull Lake has played an important and leading role in creating and providing numerous services for the ratepayers by physical and financial assistance for a wide range of programs. Some of these involvements include: the Gull Lake & District Nursing Home, Gull Lake Hospital, Antelope Lake Regional Park, Gull Lake & District Recreation Board, Regional Library, Emergency Measures Organization, Fire Protection, Airport, Vet. Services District, Pest Control, Agricultural Boards and Committees.
| | Economic Information | The economy of the RM of Gull Lake is based primarily on oil, gas, farming and ranching. 67.38% of the tax revenue is derived from oil wells and the remaining 32.62% from agriculture.
At present there are over 700 oil producing wells including batteries within the municipality. Hatton-Success gas pipeline passes through RM No.139 in an east-west direction and the South Sask. Oil Pipeline enters Division 1 from the south and exits the east side of Division 4.
CCS Energy Services established a treatment, recovery and disposal site as well as a landfill waste management facility in the municipality. This facility treats, recovers, and disposes of all upstream petroleum wastes. The facility also provides emulsion treatment, water disposal and tank and truck washing services. The class two engineered landfill, is a long-term solution for disposal of oilfield waste solids and contaminated soil. The landfill is designed, constructed and operated to exceed the highest industry and regulatory standards. The recent establishment of the Imperial Oil Supply and Distribution Centre for the Southwest was a welcomed addition to the municipality as well.
Included in agriculture revenue are the elevators located in the RM. Saskatchewan Wheat Pool Gull Lake Grain Terminal and Agri products serves not only the municipality but a large surrounding area.
The RM also owns several commercial properties including two service stations with restaurants, the Esso at Gull Lake and the Co-op at Tompkins.
The municipality offers many incentives to enhance economic growth within the region. An Agriculture Development and Diversification committee was established consisting of council appointed representatives from the six divisions in the municipality to assist in identifying local issues and programs for the community to promote economic development. This board has formed a corporate body under the name of the A.D.D. Small Loans Association for the purpose of administering loans up to $15,000 per applicant, at reasonable interest rates. Further to this the municipality has set aside Rural Economic Development money in the amount of $5000 for the purpose of extending loans to businesses within the community requiring financial assistance to either start up or expand.
The RM has a phase-in assessment on business and property improvements which includes a 100% exemption for the year of development and the first calendar year of operation, 80% exemption for the third year, 60% exemption for the fourth year and 20% exemption for the fifth year. The R.M. will build roads on road allowances only if the development requires the road and an agreement is in place.
Oil and gas well development is approved as a permitted use in the agriculture district; and the administrator has authority to issue development permits upon consultation with the reeve and respective councillor and under current approach and road development policies. Drilling licenses are issued at a fee of $450 per well and $225 per hole for exploration below the drift for the purpose of obtaining geological and structural information. Seismic testing is exempted from fees.
The RM of Gull Lake is an extremely progressive municipality. It was one of the first municipalities in the province to enter into joint agreements with other RM's, towns, and villages to accomplish development.
| | Attractions | Wildlife abounds in the area, many migratory birds, antelope, deer, badgers, rabbits and gophers can be spotted.
Prairie Outfitters offers outfitting packages which include accommodation, packed lunches, guiding (for big game and migratory bird hunting), pit digging, decoys, and plucking, dressing, hanging, freezing, and filleting services. Ideally located on a main migratory flyway in the heart of big game country, Prairie Outfitters is a hunter's paradise.
Nature lovers and hunters alike come from all over the world to see the many different kinds of wildlife and vegetation in the Great Sand Hills. Some of the sand dunes are fringed by small clumps of trees such as aspen, birch, and willow, and low brushes such as rose, chokecherry, and sagebrush. The native prairie grasses help bind the fine sand together. Farmers take advantage of the vegetation on the sand hills by grazing their cattle on the hills. Antelope feed on sagebrush and the neighboring farmers' green crops, located on the edge of the hills. The many species of animals living in this area rely on the Sand Hills for survival; these include birds such as the sand hill crane, partridge, prairie chicken, hawks, and sharp-tailed grouse, and animals such as the white-tail deer, mule deer, coyote, rabbits, antelope, and foxes. Open all year-round, tourists can climb to the top of one of the Great Sand Hills and view the 1900 square km area of dry, desert-like landscape. The large mass of sand and dunes lie in a chinook region, and because they are subject to strong winds, predominantly from the west and northwest, the sand dunes are moving east at a rate of about four meters per year.
| | Other Info | A municipal airstrip, with two oil surfaced runways, is located 1.5 miles south of Gull Lake
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