The list is out and it's creating some interesting conversations.  Our list of the Top 5 local news stories of the year.

#5, the fire at the corner of first and High Street. #4, the summer of tornadoes in Saskatchewan. #3, Deb Higgins being elected mayor. #2 was the announcement of the Civic Centre Plaza and that brings us to the #1 on our list, Valley View will be closing.

The news spread like wild fire last February although many expected the announcement.  The provincial government made it official, saying the facility will be phased out by 2016. The province said they would start planning and consulting with residents of Valley View, their families and employees to see what the best course of action will be.

Minister of Social Services June Draude said they would not be making any quick decisions and new services will be phased in over the next four years. "The group that we're talking with from Valley View today said they wanted every individual to be looked at and see what their family needs are. My goal is to make sure we have input from all three partners and have the very best outcome for our residents."

Draude adds that the new services will include community-based group homes and expanded day programming for the residents. She says the new services for individuals will be phased in over the next four years with a cost of around 40-million, about the same price as it would be to refurbish Valley View.

At the time, former Wakamow NDP MLA Deb Higgins said the announcement leaves a number of questions that need to be asked about what kind of care the residents will be receiving. "The biggest one being what kind of resources will be put into this whole transitioning of Valley View and the residents there, and that in turn raises the big question of the care that the residents will receive. The staff needs answers as well and those questions will need to be answered over the next couple of years."

Higgins also added that expecting the employees to wait for the closure of the facility in four years to see what will happen is naive on the government's part.

About 500 people were employed at Valley View when the announcement was made and CUPE 603 president Jacalyn Luterbach says the news came as a shock to them, "They're concerned about what's going to happen to the residents and of course they're worried about what's going to happen with their jobs, but they treat the residents like they are their family and there's lots of concern about what's going to happen to them.

"We'd like to participate in the process and I believe we will be meeting with the Family Advisory Group next week to continue the process forward and hope for the best for our members and the residents."

Despite the fact the City of Moose Jaw has little to nothing to do with the facility on the south side of the city, the phasing out of Valley View became an election issue this past fall.  At the All Candidates Forum in October, a significant amount of time was spent talking about the fact that Moose Jaw will, potentially, lose hundreds of high paying jobs.

Mayoral candidate Fraser Tolmie even held a news conference outside the provincial facility expressing concern first for residents and then for staff members, some of which are his own family members. Tolmie stated that his opponent Deb Higgins had her chance to fight for Valley View when she was Moose Jaw Wakamow's Member of the Legislative Assembly.

"We already had a seat at the table when Deb was our representative in Wakamow.  There was no alert and there was no notification about what kind of plan we could implement at that time.  She had her chance."

In response to her opponent's criticisms, Higgins quipped that it's "nice to see Fraser finally found his voice" saying that, up until that point, Tolmie had been very quiet on the issue of Valley View's closure and the impact it may have on the community.

"Eight months after the announced closure of Valley View, he has finally made a comment and realized the extent and impact that this is going to have on our community," she said.

"We have to advocate on behalf of the citizens of our city and advocate for the things that are important to our community.  We need to be a strong advocate and I think that's a role I can play, knowing how governments work and knowing the people that we have to make our case to."

During the campaign, Higgins said the city needs to have a seat at the table when discussions are held at the provincial level surrounding the future of the facility.

Valley View was built in 1955 to house close to 1,500 residents with intellectual disabilities, but hasn't accepted any new patients since 2002.