In reflecting back on 2020, a year beset by a global pandemic that impacted the life and work of the Virden community, Mayor Murray Wright acknowledges that times have been tough, but prefers to accentuate the positive.
"As Mayor, it’s been a busy year," he said. "COVID-19 has caused a lot of stress, a lot of headaches, but we've got through it, so far, and I'm assuming we'll get through to the end of it, hopefully down the road. I think one of the biggest negative things for the Town has been that COVID has caused the economy as a whole to not stop, but pretty close to it...it's affected everybody."
Wright took note of the impact the pandemic has had on the public purse, although much of it has not yet been pinned down. "We don't know all the numbers, but it's cost us a bit of money here and there. Overall, it hasn't been a big debt load. We've had to shut things down, so we've lost some revenue. That includes Tundra Oil & Gas Place, where rental income has plunged due to cancelled sports and events. “It is shut down because of Manitoba Health. We can't use it, but it has given us an opportunity for Town employees to give everything a deep clean and complete a number of small maintenance items that staff have been unable to get to in the past.
“It may be a break-even situation, with the Manitoba Restart Grant that the Town received that will offset lost revenues and additional expenses. We’ve gained on some sides and we've lost on some sides, so we'll have a better idea when the budget's done."
Wright pointed to the year’s accomplishments which have occurred regardless of COVID, including the province’s announcement that construction on a new bridge on P.R. 257 will start in the spring, as well as the repaving of King Street. Both will benefit the community greatly. “Last summer, Deputy Mayor Williams worked on getting our tree orchard open. We've had a lot of compliments on that and we're looking at furthering that. Our walking path along the creek is being rejuvenated, with a lot of volunteers. We’ve been working with them (the Scallion Creek Trail Committee), getting that all put back into place.
Another major thing that we've done in 2020 is that our fresh water line and well have been drilled and the pipeline is going in the ground. The contractors are way ahead of schedule and that's because of the great weather that we’ve had. Construction is scheduled to be completed by March 31, with commissioning and activation to occur later in the spring.” There is still work to be completed before the water is flowing, including construction of the pumphouse.
Wright is optimistic that the local business community will rebound from the effects of COVID-related disruptions over the coming year.
“It's going to be tough,” he said. “A lot of people are stretched right to the max. There's been some help from government, which is great. Businesses can't be open but they're still doing things to generate some revenue. I'm hoping they can all come back and I'm pretty sure they will. There might be a few that don't and I hope that doesn't happen, but we have to be realistic. Even if we get out of Code Red and back into Code Orange, that will help immensely with a lot of them."
Asked about priorities for the year ahead, Wright said that continuing to deal with the fallout from COVID and seeing the infrastructure improvements through to fruition will be key.
"Probably the biggest one is getting the buildings that are closed right now because of COVID open, and our rink...get things going so the community has things to do. We're working hard on the revitalization of the business district because it does need a facelift. Liza and the Boost Committee have pushed that along pretty hard."
Wright expressed appreciation to those who have helped the community adjust to the unique year. "It's been a community effort, and I think our community has stepped up and done a very good job and I think they'll continue to. I’m pretty positive. Although COVID has taken away a lot of lives, I think our community is headed in the right direction. I'm going to say that 2021 is going to be a lot better than 2020, even if COVID sticks around for six months or whatever. We're going to get through it."
