A Whitehorse city councillor is hoping to come to Santa's rescue and save a Christmas tradition.

Coun. Kirk Cameron brought forward a notice of motion at Tuesday evening's council meeting that a waste truck be instituted for Santa to use through the Christmas season, featuring the festive lights and decorations that are so well-known.

The motion will come forward at the Nov. 26 council meeting.

Cameron's proposal comes after city management's decision to offer Santa a city pickup truck instead of a garbage truck.

The larger truck circulated throughout the city for more than 20 years, with the exception of 2011, when he wasn't available to drive the truck because he was ill.

In an earlier interview, Brian Crist, the city's director of operations and infrastructure, acknowledged the city has a back-up garbage truck.

However, given the city's growth in recent years, he said, it's in use much more than the previous back-up truck Santa drove around was, making it difficult to be available for Christmas.

If it were to be decorated and needed to be used, the decorations would have to be taken down, potentially delaying garbage or compost pickup.

City management also said the lights on Santa's vehicle will not be lit up until he gets to his destination and the truck is stopped.

In the past, the city received a waiver from the territory's motor vehicles branch to display the lights.

While it could likely still get the waiver, Crist has stated there remain liability and safety issues with the lights, so the city won't pursue acquiring the waiver.

Though it was a decision made at the management level, a number of people commenting on the Facebook Save

Our Santa page have taken issue with council, stating things like: "Let Santa over rule the grinches in city council.”

Santa has not publicly stated yet whether he will be hitting the streets this year under the city's new rule.

Speaking to reporters after last night's meeting, he noted there's been a "ground swell” of support for Santa to drive around in the festively-lit garbage truck.

Along with the now 569 "likes” on the Save Our Santa Facebook page, Cameron said, he's been averaging about 30 emails a day from Whitehorse residents calling for the Christmas tradition to be kept alive.

It's pretty much impossible to walk down the street without someone asking them what's happening with Santa, he and Coun. Betty Irwin said.

Irwin has publicly stated her support for Santa to deliver his Whitehorse-brand of Christmas cheer in the traditional lit-up garbage truck.

"That's how it started,” Irwin reiterated last night when asked why a garbage truck is so important to the tradition.

The tradition began with Santa decorating the garbage truck and handing out candy canes during garbage pick-up routes more than 20 years ago.

The tradition grew to the point where Santa had to give up his garbage collection duties in the days leading up to Christmas to deliver cheer and candy canes throughout the city.

He ventured from daycares to schools to extended care facilities in his garbage truck, waving as he passed residents in the streets.

It's "absolutely unique,” Irwin pointed out, adding there is no mistaking the vehicle for anything other than a garbage truck.

As Cameron said, it's almost like Whitehorse's answer to the Charlie Brown Christmas tree.

Questioned about the need for the garbage truck to gather refuse or compost if the regular trucks are unavailable, Cameron said he expects most Whitehorse residents would be willing to live with the inconvenience of delayed pick-up to keep the tradition alive.

He also pointed out that the city could explore those issues when his motion comes forward, a motion he said he's happy to promote given the level of support for the tradition.