Community mailbox program almost here
- Details
- Published on Tuesday, August 9, 2016
Photo by Kira Paterson. One of the two new community mailboxes scheduled to be ready by August 15. Pictured is the one located beside the McLaughlin GM dealership, on the road leading to the Westcreek development.
By Kira Paterson
Neepawa Banner/Neepawa Press
Neepawa Town Council: Tuesday, August 2
The topic of community mailboxes, which had been discussed in previous meetings, was brought up again to give an update on the progress of the project. Introducing the new community boxes is meant to reduce congestion at the central post office in Neepawa and help meet the demand for new boxes.
Council noted that administration is working with Canada Post to ensure that the community mailboxes will be well maintained by the corporation, including keeping litter to a minimum and clearing snow in the winter. Canada Post has also agreed to waive the fees for the first year of the mailbox changeover, for those who are changing from a box at the office to one of the community boxes.
The new boxes are in two different locations, one on private property at Aspen Lea and one on public property at 154 Main Street (by the McLaughlin GM dealership). Residents and businesses in the area, including the Westcreek development, will be using the boxes located on the public property. Town administration says that they have been told the boxes should be in use by Aug. 15. Anyone with questions regarding the project is encouraged contact Canada Post.
Family drop-in centre project
Neepawa Council recently received a request to support a one-year pilot project for a family resource drop-in centre in Neepawa. The steering committee, made up of representatives from Neepawa and Area Immigrant Settlement Services, Budz n’ Bloom Daycare, Neepawa Salvation Army, Beautiful Plains School Division and a member of the community, is hoping to get the project started this September. They have perceived the need in the community for a place where families can go to get information about programs and services available for family related issues and decided to respond to the need with this project.
The plan is to have a drop-in centre open every other Wednesday from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm, with two volunteers or staff members there to open and close, put out resources and material, keep a record of traffic and answer any questions. The pilot project will be evaluated after the first six months and then again after 11 months to determine if and how they will continue with the project. It will be coordinated by the steering committee during the entire pilot test. The committee has estimated the cost to be around $2,500 for the year, including rent and basic supplies. They are reaching out to local organizations and agencies, including town council, to request support in the form of volunteers, organizing, supplying informational material or sessions, promotion, basic supplies and/or funds.
Council agreed to support the project in some way. Providing a space for the centre was discussed as well as providing them with information on services available in the community. In what manner council will support the steering committee is still to be decided.
Phase two of sewer project underway
With phase one of the trunk sewer project being complete, the bidding for tenders on phase two is now closed. Six bids were received, all being within $177,000 of one another. The lowest bid was accepted at just under $1.44 million, submitted by Fanset Construction of Winnipeg. This comes in under the engineer’s estimate of $1.5 million.
The work for phase two includes a gravity sewer and a lift station, which will result in a fully functioning project once finished.
Meeting planned to discuss bird sanctuary
In light of the announcement of Jake Birch’s resignation at the end of August, council has decided that they need to take a leadership role in determining the future of the bird sanctuary at Rotary Park. It was agreed by council that it isn’t the Town’s responsibility to keep the sanctuary, but because it is a prominent feature in Neepawa, they needed to address the issue in some way.
After a discussion, council decided to hold a community meeting, including the Rotary Club, the Neepawa Wildlife Association and any community members who would like to see the bird sanctuary remain at the park.
Members of council wanted to stress that showing up to the meeting does not automatically mean that one is volunteering to take over. They want concerned citizens to come out to share their ideas on how to continue with the sanctuary.
The bird sanctuary meeting is planned for Tuesday, Aug. 16 at 7:00 pm at the town office. Anyone and everyone who would like to see the bird sanctuary carry on is encouraged to come out, show their support and share their ideas.
Miscellaneous
A letter of thanks was sent to Mayor de Groot from the Rotary Club on the subject of the RCMP Musical Ride. Rotary wished to thank the Town for its involvement in the organizing of the ride and for its help in making the show go smoothly.
In the mayor’s report, de Groot reiterated that point, extending his own thanks to the Town on all of the work that was put into it, using good communication and professionalism to deal with any concerns brought up.
De Groot also noted that there have been some break-ins reported in the area recently. He took some time to stress the importance of keeping track of one’s assets and reporting stolen property to the RCMP. Keeping track of serial numbers, taking pictures of valuables and reporting when they go missing are the best ways to ensure that items can get back to the original owner if the police recover them.
Among the committee assignment reports was an update on where NADCO is at with the Beautiful Plains Medical Clinic expansion. They are currently working on the final floor plans for the addition, which will bring up the number of exam rooms to 20 and increase doctor capacity to 10. There will also be two procedure rooms and another suite for student doctors, allowing for five students to be there at a time. Currently, there have been four serious inquiries into the two houses on Main Street that NADCO purchased to make room for the expansion. Tenders on the buildings are pending.
