Neepawa Council Debrief: Highlighting a Summer of Successes

August’s meeting of the Neepawa Town Council starts out with a delegation from a local citizen bringing the need for an animal kennel or boarding service to the town’s attention. Council agreed that it was a conspicuous absence in the community and while it would not likely be an appropriate project for a town to undertake itself, their economic development office would likely be very interested in having a conversation with anyone interested in developing the idea further.

In Council reports, both Councillor Parrot and Councillor Sisley highlight the success of the Children’s Business Fair which saw 20 young people set up business stalls and brought in over $3500 in overall sales. Councillor Kostenchuk reports on the success of the HAND, or Home Assistance of Neepawa and District, barbecue, and Councillor Sisley also reports on the good reception for the first glow swim and postponed rec barbecue which allowed the recreation department to highlight many of their ongoing projects. Other reports included the Yellowhead Centre and the County Courthouse as well as the Finance Committee which is starting to discuss the 2024 budget.

Manager of Operations Denis Saquet updates Council on the progress with the old RCMP building which is being converted into the new home for an LPN program through Assiniboine Community College. Both interior and exterior framing is in progress as well as shingling, and it is expected to be ready in time for the January 2024 intake into the nursing program. Elsewhere in town, construction is proceeding at park lake including soil compaction and concrete pouring, and crews are still busy in town patching roads and sidewalks. When asked about the use of water resources to water the athletic fields at the flat, Saquet assures Council that they monitor the availability of water and will dial back the watering when necessary but so far levels have been more than sufficient.

Council receives the good news that we will be receiving an increase to our policing grant to help with increased costs in the new contracts, an amount that was not budgeted for. Overall a 28% funding increase was received across the province and Neepawa also benefited from our increased population on the last census. CAO Synchyshyn also reports that a water rights application sent back in 2011 was finally approved thanks to the revised model of the aquifer the town draws from, and they are now able to proceed with their proposed exploration.

Finally, Council voted down a proposed zoning bylaw as the developer decided not to proceed with their housing project. Council felt it would be better to revert the land back to its previous zoning designation rather than go forward with the rezoning, thus limiting the future potential uses of the land and their own development agreement options.

Also covered were the financial report and an offer to purchase a lot in the industrial park .