The RM of Wallace-Woodworth held a regular council meeting on Feb. 14, where the Virden Handi-van was the dominant topic. Councillors heard of the transportation service’s deficit as Couns. Lachapelle and Kinnaird brought information from a Handi-van committee meeting.
They reported that the organization has been operating at a significant deficit for several years. This has resulted in the erosion of the fund set aside for replacement of the vehicle and it will continue unless a change is made in the funding structure.
A proposed increase in user fees would result in a cost of around $250 for a client in a wheelchair to go to the doctor in Brandon. All councillors agreed that this would be unacceptable and discussed some reasons why this situation has developed when, in comparison, the Elkhorn Handi-van service is operating effectively. One factor that is different is that all Elkhorn Handi-van drivers are volunteers while the Virden organization uses a full-time paid driver.
Currently the RM contributes $3000 annually to both the Virden and Elkhorn vans. The Virden organization also receives similar funding from the Town of Virden and $1000 from Pipestone. Kinnaird suggested the possibility of increasing the RM contribution by an amount matching any increase given by the Town of Virden.
Coun. Humphries agreed with the possibility of increasing the RM’s contribution, saying, “If anything deserves our support it’s the Handi-van.” Reeve Canart agreed that support for this service could increase but that any support would need to be equitable between the Virden and Elkhorn organizations.
Canart said, “We have a service in the community, that means a lot for seniors and others that need it. The public need to understand that it's not staying viable, that the way it's currently operating fiscally or financially is not sustainable.” He said that community volunteer help is essential to assist in fundraising and management of the service.
Further discussion focused on possible changes to the governance of the organization to include more community members on the Handi-van committee. Canart agreed but said that this deficit in funding needs to be addressed immediately. Council will address specifics of the funding policy at the next session of the committee of the whole.
General Business
Several resolutions were passed regarding transportation items including an agreement with Manitoba Infrastructure to purchase eight new community signs for the Elkhorn campground at a cost of $4147.
The bylaw setting wastewater rates for Elkhorn received first reading.
The Abuse and Molestation Policy manual received approval.
Council also approved the application for a Main Street Improvement grant at the Elkhorn Leisure Centre.
Interest earned by Johnston Cemetery and Breadalbane Cemetery perpetual care funds was allocated to their operating accounts.
A new washer and dryer are ready to go into the Woodworth fire hall and council approved the quote from Woodworth Electric for $1685 to do the installation.
Public hearing
The regular meeting was adjourned, and a public hearing was opened to deal with two items.
A conditional use order was proposed to place a mobile home in a rural general zone for the purpose of creating a new parcel of land around an existing mobile home. Development Officer Cory Nixon stated that all requirements had been met to comply with the planning act. The mobile home is already in place and there have been no concerns from neighbouring landowners. He recommended that council approve the order with the condition that it be acted upon within twelve months.
Council then considered an order to vary the established requirements in order to increase the maximum lot size for a single-family dwelling within a rural general zone from 10 acres to 40 acres to allow the current landowners to subdivide an established yard site.
Nixon stated that all requirements of the planning act had been met and the tree line creates a natural boundary for the yard site. He recommended that council approve the order with the condition that it also be acted upon within twelve months.
The public hearing was adjourned, and the regular meeting resumed, where council approved both the conditional use order and the variation order with the recommended conditions.
Coun. Stambuski was approved to attend a planning for climate change workshop. She said that it’s important to have municipal representation there and stated, “I'm wondering if the government is not going to start forcing us to put certain things with climate change in our development plans.”
COUNCILLOR REPORTS
Councillors who attended the recent Southwest Business & Entrepreneur’s Expo agreed that this was an excellent event to stimulate business growth and encourage new businesses in the region. Council expressed appreciation for organizers Echo Finlay, Economic Development Officer for the Souris-Glenwood Community Development Corporation, and Tiffany Cameron, Chair of the 2023 Southwest Business & Entrepreneur Expo.
Disaster Conference Management
Councillors attended the Disaster Management Conference, Jan. 25 – 27 in Winnipeg. This conference featured sessions on how disasters affect communities, both during and after the event. Stambuski referred to the session where a social worker and consultant out of Nova Scotia, and the mayor of the County of Colchester described the aftermath of the mass casualties suffered in the shootings there in 2020.
Stambuski also reported on a session dealing with firefighter cancer awareness, where she learned that the cancer rate in firefighters is 9% higher than in the general population. The presenters were two female firefighters, both cancer survivors They emphasized not only the importance of thorough cleaning of gear and vehicles after a fire but also filling out the forms required by the Workman’s Compensation Board after every event to provide a record of what firefighters have been exposed to.
Coun. Caldwell described a session where participants met with representatives of a national media association. She said the discussion grew quite heated as presenters talked about the justification for reporting details about tragic disasters such as the Humboldt Broncos bus crash. They felt that the photos and aircraft videos of the crash scene were needed because everyone wanted to see them. All in attendance replied, “No we don’t want to see that.” She said, “What I took away from that was just making sure we have that good relationship with our local media… and making sure they get the story.”
Western Caucus
The Western Caucus of Manitoba Municipalities is an opportunity for council members from the entire region to gather and discuss issues of common interest. Recently this group met with a delegation from Prairie Mountain Health (PMH) to discuss the challenges our communities face with health care. Caldwell noted that the region is short 40 general practitioners and that they are offering retired nurses a $10,000 bonus to come back to work part-time (0.7) and $20,000 to come back fulltime. She said, “It's not just physicians and nurses, it’s lab, it’s nutrition, it's housekeeping. It's all of the aspects of healthcare.” She added, “It's very easy to pit us against them. And we're all trying to work in the same direction and the frustrations that we have as communities they have as well as, as an entity.”
Reeve Canart expressed his appreciation to the administration from PMH who attended the meeting and faced many tough conversations about the state of healthcare in the region. He feels that “whether we like it or not, we're getting dragged into being involved to try and… help the system and maybe that's a role for us; making sure the community is aware that we need to be attractive. We need to have services (like) recreation and helping to integrate people who aren't feeling part of community to grow roots here.”
After an in camera session to discuss legal, labour and land items the meeting was adjourned.
