With the 2017 planning session weekend behind them, Niverville council and senior town staff members are preparing to forge ahead with a number of new and ongoing initiatives for 2017. Much consideration was given to long-term planning as well, looking at the community’s needs over the next ten years.
“I have always enjoyed the annual planning session,” says Mayor Myron Dyck. “It is a time where council goes over the requests from all department managers and community groups. This year council met for 22 hours over two days and spent that time going over the various requests, assessing the needs of our community as a whole, and then producing a plan to meet those needs. The weekend is a time where council has lively discussions and each councillor makes passionate cases for what they believe should be the priorities for 2017, 2018, and in the next few years.”
In a recent press release, council outlined three priorities they intend to address in 2017.
With the pending annexation of land from the RM of Hanover scheduled to come into effect January 1, one of council’s primary goals will be to continue development of the Niverville Business Park. Phase one will begin with the registration and development of 30 acres of the new 180-acre parcel of land. It will include 23 lots varying in size from a half-acre to two acres. Council plans to have the engineering, legal, and design services completed in January, after which time tendering and construction can occur.
Council has set a tentative date of 2018 for the construction of the multiplex fieldhouse and arena, mindful of the extensive fundraising still required for the project. Throughout 2017, council will continue to assist in the project through planning and fundraising. Their goal is to help secure funding from a variety of levels: government, businesses, foundations, and private citizen donations.
Finally, council has been listening to resident concerns regarding high traffic areas and the busy intersections where access to Main Street has become difficult. Some Main Street intersections in question are the ones at Sixth Avenue and Fifth Avenue, both used by many commuters living in Fifth Avenue Estates, and the turnoff at Krahn Road, which leads to the new Tim Hortons and Shell station as well as the Highlands development.
Over the course of the next year, council is planning to initiate a community access management functional study, in cooperation with Manitoba Infrastructure and Transportation. The study will examine a variety of options, including turning lanes, traffic lights, and roundabouts (similar to Hampton Drive south), all considered excellent tools for handling large traffic volumes. The goal for Niverville will be to develop a strategic plan that will serve as a guide for road development in the future. The study will also enable town council to access infrastructure grants offered by the province.
Though many other subjects were up for discussion at the recent planning session, council still has much work to do in prioritizing them. Some initiatives will be dependent on the April 2017 budget.
“We look forward to getting started [on] rolling… town initiatives out in the coming year,” says Councillor Nathan Dueck. “Hundreds of ideas were shared and expressed [at the planning sessions] and I look forward to having these ideas put into action in the years to come.”
