The second half of the Council meeting is dominated by a presentation on the town’s water and sewer rates proposal for 2023-24. CAO Colleen Synchyshyn summarizes the documentation she prepared for the Water Services Board which includes a background on Neepawa’s facilities and what the proposal means for ratepayers in the Neepawa area. The presentation covers how the system operates overall from the well sites to distribution and the major factors going into setting the rates including new upgrades and technologies, water sales both domestic and bulk, and water storage and sewage needs.

The incremental increases being proposed are relatively minor across the board, with the increase ranging from about $13 to $30 a year for most domestic users. The proposal also covers the proposed rates for bulk or industrial users as well as the pipelines that go into the neighbouring municipalities.

Neepawa has never had a robust taxi service, but there is still a need for regulations when small businesses and individuals attempt to fill that void, especially considering the current and potential growth of the town. A new bylaw lays out the minimum credentials needed to operate a vehicle for hire. CAO Synchyshyn indicates that this bylaw does not apply to vehicles for institutional use, such as multi-passenger vans used by Touchwood Park or Kinsmen Kourts.

Also covered in this half of the meeting were the votes on bylaw amendments covering the water rates proposal as well as the zoning amendment covered in part one of the meeting as well as a note that the neighbouring Town of Minnedosa is beginning to recover from the flood and could now use volunteers to help remove sandbags.