Shawn Bailey
Panel appointed to guide trustees
Minister of Education and Early Childhood Learning Nello Altomare appointed an oversight panel as part of an ongoing governance review of Mountain View School Division (MVSD).
A release on the MVSD website indicated the three-person panel comprised of Manitoba Métis Federation vice-president Frances Chartrand, Brandon School Division trustee Jim Murray and Manitoba Teachers’ Society staff officer Andrea Zaroda, will “assist in navigating recent board and staff turnover, strengthening governance practices, and community relations. They will also ensure that MVSD progresses on key priorities, such as diversity, inclusion and reconciliation.”
The move came following a June 10 regular meeting of MVSD trustees, which drew a room full of area residents looking for more information on the firing of superintendent/CEO Stephen Jaddock and the subsequent resignation of three trustees. Those present went home following the meeting without the answers they were seeking.
Prior to the start of the meeting, board chair Gabe Mercier laid out some rules for those in attendance to follow. Mainly, Mercier indicated anyone not on the agenda as a delegation was not allowed to speak during the meeting.
“Listen respectfully without interruption. That means no laughing, no clapping, no talking or any forms of interruptions,” Mercier said.
“Listen actively to understand the other person’s point of view. As chair, I’m going to enforce these rules strictly.”
With no delegations on the agenda, the board continued with its regular business. With the exception of a motion accepting the resignations of trustees Leifa Misko, Floyd Martens and Scott McCallum, that business did not included any information pertaining to the issues on the minds of those in the gallery. That prompted MVSD parent Jarri Thompson to break the rules laid out at the beginning of the meeting.
“This meeting is almost over and as a parent in the division I am definitely going to have my say,” Thompson said from her chair in the gallery.
“I’m deeply concerned by the actions of the board conduct and you have consistently violated Mountain View School Division board policies. Whether you like it or not topics such as truth and reconciliation and 2SLGBTQ+ are protected by federal and provincial legislations, legislations that you all would have signed to uphold had you done your homework before today instead of going back to find out what your policies are.”
Read more in this weeks Dauphin Herald.
City identifies engineering firm to oversee lagoon expansion project
The expansion of Dauphin’s sewage lagoon officially got underway with the awarding of a contract for engineering services at a special meeting of city council, May 6.
Stantec Consulting Ltd. was awarded the contract for engineering services for the project at a cost of $1,114,136.96.
The project was advertised through a request for proposals on Mar. 6, and by the time it closed on Apr. 11, five proposals from engineering firms including JR Cousin Consultants Ltd., MPE, a division of Englobe, Dillon Consulting Ltd., WSP Canada Inc. and Stantec Consulting Ltd.
While Stantec’s bid was not the lowest it was by far the most comprehensive, Public Works and Operations director Mike VanAlstyne said.
VanAlstyne said Stantec approached the project with innovative ideas, while ensuring the City’s needs would be met. They took the time to visit the site during the tendering period, he said, and met with city workers to understand what challenges are currently facing the wastewater treatment infrastructure.
“They’re a one-stop shop. They’re a large engineering corporation that has vast experience in wastewater treatment facilities and water treatment,” VanAlstyne said, adding the firm is based out of Winnipeg.
“They just checked all the boxes.”
The first step for Stantec will be to take the lagoon study completed eight years ago and make sure the design for the expansion is still relevant today.
“They will be taking the design or the study that was completed in 2016 and they’ll be modernizing it and updating it based on current population projections and effluent loads,” VanAlstyne said.
“They’ll adjust for the next 20 years and design for a 20-year life what the upgrades need to look like.”
That being said, VanAlstyne does not expect there will be many changes to the plans.
“I expect the system to be the same. I think there’s been modernizations to some stuff, even though it was only eight years ago, to some of the treatment technologies,” he said.
“And our consultant has some very good ideas about some efficiencies, as well, that we could see. So we’ll see how it goes through the design phase.”
That design phase is expected to begin in the coming days after which Stantec will develop the tender documents and provide consulting services during the construction phase.
“Essentially it’s a 2-1/2 year project for them,” VanAlstyne said, adding the construction tender will be issued next March and construction is slated to begin in the summer of 2025 and the project will take anywhere from 14 months to 16 months to complete.
Capital budget supports a solid plan, says mayor
The City of Dauphin’s 2024 financial plan presented at a public hearing May 6, included a capital plan which will transform the community into a beehive of activity this year.
Road work planned for 2024 calls for the reconstruction of 10th Avenue Southwest from First Street Southwest to Second Street Southwest at a cost of $182,000, as well as Seventh Avenue Southwest from Main Street South to First Street Southwest at a cost $211,000.
Get all the numbers and details in this week's Dauphin Herald!
City's final Spring Cleanup to begin soon
Dauphin’s annual spring cleanup campaign is set to begin next week and it will be the last time city residents see Public Works crews collecting yard waste from back alleys in the spring.
Mike VanAlstyne, director of Public Works and Operations said a decision was made to discontinue the spring collection with an eye to improving operations in other areas.
“We’re looking at the cost of doing the work and the amount of time it takes, which can be better spent getting a start on a lot of the other maintenance work that we’ve just been unable to get done in the last couple years,” VanAlstyne said. “Spring cleanup wastes about three weeks of favourable weather that we could be doing other meaningful tasks with the manpower and equipment. So it’s just a good opportunity now as the green bin program should be at full usage for anyone wanting to use by the end of this summer.”
VanAlstyne said with the difficulties the City has had in securing seasonal staff, having five employees and several pieces of equipment tied up for three weeks each spring puts the department under the gun to complete maintenance work such as crack sealing in the fall.
“It’s a situation that we can’t get anything else started until the middle of June, essentially, which isn’t acceptable from a maintenance standpoint on critical infrastructure,” he said. “Spring cleanup uses at least five employees at a time that they could be busy doing something else.”
Fall cleanup campaigns, he added, will continue as usual.
The final Spring Cleanup Campaign gets underway, May 13, in the Day 1 area on the garbage schedule.
During one pass through the city, crews will collect accumulated garden waste, grass clippings and leaves, as well as shrubs and tree branches less than six inches in diameter at a maximum length of eight feet.
These items will only be collected if they are free of household waste, hazardous waste and recyclable materials and are in a clearly identifiable pile or packaged in biodegradable bags or boxes.
The spring clean up campaign will occur in the back lanes, so place the items near your back lane for pick-up. Those residences that do not have a back lane, place your items on the boulevard near the curb.
Large equipment will be used, so it is important to place the items close to the lane or curb to avoid property damage.
NDP officials meet with area groups, tour facilities
The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) convention held in Dauphin last week provided union members from around the province an opportunity to get together, discuss union business, honour some deserving individuals with awards and elect executive members.
It also provided an opportunity for provincial government representatives to network with CUPE members, connect with municipal leaders and familiarize themselves with the important projects and work underway in the community.
“It’s first and foremost a great opportunity to host (the convention) and and showcase Dauphin and the surrounding area,” Dauphin MLA and Agriculture Minister Ron Kostyshyn said, adding he also took the opportunity to introduce several of his caucus colleagues to the area.
For the full in depth story, check this week's Dauphin Herald.
City’s mill rate rises slightly in 2024 budget
Dauphin residents will once again see a slight increase in their municipal taxes this year according to budget documents presented at a public hearing, May 5.
The mill rate has been set at 19.513 for 2024, up from last year’s 18.937. The tax levy will net the City $7,276,549 this year, roughly 3.5 per cent over the 2023 take.
What that means for homeowners is an extra $71 on their tax bills
With costs increasing due to inflation, several large infrastructure underway on Main Street South, at the Buckwold Bridge and out at the sewage lagoon, council decided to act before falling behind as they have seen other municipalities do, mayor David Bosiak said.
“All of those things combined with inflation, combined with two new union contracts that were signed last year with our staff, we felt that a modest tax increase that was consistent with the rate of inflation would be manageable,” Bosiak said. “We’ve gone through a period of fairly steady, not spectacular, but steady assessment growth. For several years during that period we used just the growth in assessment to continue to do business. But council didn’t want to get into a position that other municipalities are in right now. We talked to several at AMM that are having double digit tax increases in an effort to catch up after years of no tax increases.”
Bosiak added discussions, which he described as thoughtful, were held around possibly raising the mill rate more in anticipation of capital expenditures which might surface in the future
“Council decided that we would go to our taxpayers when we know exactly what the costs of things will be and not before,” Bosiak said, adding as an example a project which might begin two years down the road, but asking for the money now and collecting interest on it until it was spent. “We thought that it was much better that the people hold on to their own money until there’s an actual need and the project is occurring, at the present time or the very near future.”
In looking to the future, Bosiak said council is philosophically committed to a tax system that is consistent with inflation
“So that we don’t get behind, just on the basic cost of things,” he said.
To that end, $1.6 million will be drawn from reserves to finance operations this year. Bosiak said it seems incongruous to ask taxpayers for more while stockpiling in reserve funds.
“We need to take money out of our piggy banks before we can ask people to take it out of theirs,” he said, adding there is, however, a balance the city should maintain in reserve. “And so last year we reduced our reserves by a couple of million dollars and we’re doing the same again this year.
“We are still maintaining our reserves slightly above the benchmark that (Finance director Scott Carr) outlined, which is equivalent to about one years’s worth of taxation. So we have about a $7.5 million line that we don’t want to get under.”
Revenue from other sources will also see a significant increase, climbing to $13,679,515 from just under $6 million last year, driven mainly by conditional provincial transfers expected to hit $7.9 million this year. Grants of $3.8 million for the Main Street South rehabilitation and $3 million for the upcoming daycare project account for the majority of the increase.
Overall, General Fund revenue for 2024 has been budgetted at $21,746,898.
On the expenditure side, all areas have seen slight increases.
The General Government Services budget is set at $1,556,173 up from $1,446,878 last year. The 8.6 per cent increase will, among other things, include regular staff wage increases and community grants and appropriations, which have risen to $74,600, up by $16,600 over last year.
The Protective Services budget has been set at $3,991,353 compared to $3,584,908 in 2023. At $3,034,015, the RCMP contract accounts for the majority of spending and the increase of 6.3 per cent.
Transportation Services will see expenditure totalling $2,049,481, up from the $1,905,366 budgetted last year, an increase of 5.34 per cent. Spending supports operating costs for public works, such as maintenance of curbs and gutters, lanes and roads.
A total of $1,058,926 has been set aside for Environmental Health Services, up slightly by 2.78 per cent from the $1,043,884 budgetted last year.
Public Health and Welfare Services also increased slightly, by 4.4 per cent from the $33,749 budgetted last year to $35,249 this year. The money spent covers the one-tier social assistance payment to Province of Manitoba and will support the Community Safety and Wellbeing Plan currently in development.
Environmental Development Services has been allotted $288,427 for 2024 compared to $179,605 last year, an increase of 29.68 per cent, which will support a Zoning Bylaw review starting soon. Expenditures also include the Dutch Elm Disease tree removal, Communities in Bloom and weed control.
The budget for Economic Development Services, at $635,977 has been set considerably higher than the actual $394,333 spent last year. It is an increase of 20.97 per cent to the budget, which fluctuates depending on development.
When it comes to Recreation and Cultural Services, the $2,254,441 budgetted this year is an increase of 4.13 per cent from the 2023 budget of $2,170,892.
While 87 per cent of expenditures make up the appropriation to Dauphin Recreation Services, the budget also supports facilities such as the Watson Arts Centre, Fort Dauphin Museum, Dauphin Rail Museum, and the Dauphin Public Library.
Finally, Fiscal Services saw a big jump to $8,186,721 this year from $148,902 because of conditional provincial grants.
Utilities
In the Utility Fund, income is projected at $3,396,096.
The bulk of that income will come through residential water sales budgeted at just over $2.3 million and sewer service charges totalling $669,029.
On the expenditure side, operation and maintenance of the water supply system accounts for the majority of expenses at just over $2.1 million, while sewage collection and disposal accounts for another $328,625.
The Utility has $623,300 in capital work planned, along with transfers to reserves in the amount of $250,000 and $83,517 in debenture debt charges.
Light the lights
Theatre Amisk had the community rolling in the aisles as they presented three sold out performances of Co-op The Musical at the Watson Arts Centre over the weekend.
Written and directed by WAC co-ordinator Peter Nadolny, the locally-focused play centred on a regular day at a Co-op store.
On top of the regular performances, staff from Dauphin Consumer’s Co-op were invited to the dress rehearsal, May 2, as a thank-you for all their support in making the performance a reality.
City wins tourism marketing award
Dauphin and the Parkland figured prominently in the second annual Tourism Awards Winnipeg/Manitoba, last week.
Tourism Dauphin won a Marketing Campaign of the Year Award for rural Manitoba for it’s Adventure From Here On Out initiative, while Assessippi Ski Hill and Resort was named the rural winner of the Business of the Year - Large.
Finally, former Dauphin resident Doug Stephen of WOW Hospitality Concepts received an Award of Distinction for his outstanding contributions to some of Winnipeg’s best culinary institutions and the community at large.
“It feels very rewarding to get recognition for all the work we have done. We’re a small team and we have a small committee with some volunteers and we’re a small community,” said Dauphin Economic Development manager Martijn van Luijn, who accepted the award on behalf of the community.
Get a full rundown of all the awards and more in this week's Dauphin Herald!
Smile Zones coming to Dauphin Regional Health Centre
Dauphin Regonal Health Centre (DRHC) is set to get a bit of a facelift thanks to Tim Hortons Westman and the Smilezone Foundation.
Through their Smile Cookie campaign, Tim Hortons Westman franchisees Rhonda Pardy and Greg Crisanti are looking forward to helping provide a more welcoming atmosphere at the region’s largest health facility. The initiative aims to enhance the healing environment and the comfort of patients and their families within the health centre.
“I was introduced to Smilezone and their team after seeing the completion of a Smilezone project at the Brandon Regional Hospital,” Crisanti said.
“Witnessing the transformation to the hospital as well as the impact on both patients and staff, we knew we wanted to bring this opportunity to Dauphin.”
Smilezone Foundation is a registered children’s charity founded by Scott Bachly and Adam Graves in 2012.
The foundation’s mission is to “make tough days a little brighter” for children receiving medical treatment in hospitals and health centres across Canada.
That is accomplished by renovating existing health care spaces (such as waiting rooms, playrooms and patient rooms), over a single weekend into fun and engaging “Smilezones” to harness the uplifting power of a smile and creating a safe space where children and their families can find comfort and distraction during challenging times.
“On behalf of our foundation’s board of directors, we extend our heartfelt thanks to Tim Hortons Westman for generously sponsoring the 2024 Smilezone project at Dauphin Regional Health Centre, a partnership made possible through their Smile Cookie campaign,” Bachly said, adding medical professionals have been consulted to uniquely design Smilezones for each facility.
Find the full in depth story in this week's Dauphin Herald!
Workshop reimagines Second Avenue Northwest
An informal workshop was held last week as a preliminary step to reimagining the first block of Second Avenue as a “creative corridor.”
Dauphin Economic Development manager Martijn van Luijn has been tasked with creating a new vision for area.
“Council has desire to assist with reviving downtown and this would be considered sort of a pilot program, how can we reimagine this street by introducing some enhancements,” van Luijn said.
A consultant from Urban Systems has been contracted to help develop a plan and used the workshop as an opportunity to present examples from other communities as a means of stimulating conversation about what might be possible in Dauphin.
Check this week's Dauphin Herald for the full story!