May 2nd Neepawa Council Debrief: Spring Cleaning for Town Bylaws

The Neepawa Council begins with councillors report on their committee activities for the past couple of weeks, including library services, infrastructure improvements at the clinic, and the need for communities to be more forward thinking and work together.

One item of particular interest comes from Councillor Nadeau who gives Council some information on training programs available through Westlake Employment Services. These include bridging programs and tuition support for courses such as Class 1 Driver training and Nursing that are intended to help students who need a few more qualifications to be eligible for certification or who need assistance with the costs.

Manager of Operations Denis Saquet reports on summer employment at the town office. While some students have started work, other positions are still open so students should contact the office if they’re interested. There is also a tender still out for roadside mowing, as the town is still looking for someone who meets all the conditions to do the job for the summer months.

Council had previously approved a motion to hire a company to develop a cemetery database for the town. However that company withdrew from the contract as they were unable to complete it, and Council put out another tender for the project. The town received four proposals and recommended one of them to Council so that the project can resume.

CAO Colleen Synchyshyn then brings forward several policies that need to be amended, updated, or repealed to bring them up to date. While some are more substantive, others require a simple re-numbering of the existing policy to fit the current numbering scheme. In some cases, policies have to be rewritten into bylaws or dropped as some are covered by other existing policies.

One of the more substantive changes is a bylaw for tile drainage within the town, which was worked on in conjunction with the Mayor of Rosedale. It primarily relates to development within the Town of Neepawa, primarily putting a codified process in place. There will be a public hearing in the next few weeks for commentary from the public and government departments.

Next, council moves onto the subject of bylaws, some of which are receiving their second and third readings and some of which are newly introduced. Council passes bylaws on a map amendment for a project on Dominion Road as well as the 2023 financial plan that was introduced last meeting.

The two new bylaws in process are regarding a road closure and fire protection respectively. The offset section of Commerce Street that was closed during the street repairs and paving on that section of Mountain Avenue, requires an official bylaw to be closed, freeing up the lot for other uses. In the other bylaw, the the RM of Rosedale is looking to enter into a partnership similar to one Neepawa shares with the municipality of North Cypress-Langford where fire services from Neepawa will be available as a backup should local Rosedale fire services not be able to attend an incident or need additional help. The agreement includes the criteria that goes into determining the fee for service whenever Neepawa is called upon to help.

Finally, Councillor Gerrard brings up a couple of items for the public to be aware of. First, the area that was paved to prepare for the new tennis courts should not be driven upon, and the hardware for the tennis courts will be installed in June. Second, the area of Brown Street leading to the Water Treatment Plant - as well as other hilly areas in town - sees a lot of pedestrian traffic, so both drivers and pedestrians should remain cautious in those areas as visibility of oncoming traffic can be impaired.

Also covered were physician recruitment, water main extension, and the regular financial report.