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After a little over three months in office, Mayor David Bosiak says he's really starting to settle into his new role.
He says there's been a lot to learn in a short period of time, but the people surrounding him have made the transition easy.
"It's been a learning curve. I knew going in that there was a lot of stuff in the blender, and that we have to figure out how that works. The thing that's been more interesting is getting a sense of the capacity at City Hall, both on the council side of the table, and on the admin side. So I've been very pleased to find out we've got a very capable administrative team, management and staff, and then the council has pretty much been onside, in the sense that we all want to think, or are thinking of the same kind of things going forward, so that's been the pleasant part of the first three months. Just getting a sense that we're all on the same team, all pulling in the same direction."
Bosiak says that there's an interesting dynamic when it comes to the council, as there are three experienced, and three first-time councilors.
"The three incumbents have all been there for a while and understand what's going on. So we've been relying on them a little bit for some of the protocols and process type of things. Also, provide us a little bit of the backend information on projects that are in the works, or things that the city has had on their books for a while and we're now getting down to dealing with."
He says the new councilors bring the experience of their own to the table as well.
"There's a really interesting mix. You know we have a councilor who was employed by the city on a contract for many years as a safety officer, or as our EMO coordinator, Councilor Daley. And then you've got another councilor, Councilor Sobering, who also was employed by the city on a contract as our efficiency and energy advocate. So it's really great to have that mix. Another real positive surprise is Councilor Ray coming in with a really astute point of view on things. He's generally been a little bit quiet but analyzing and very engaged in all the committees and things he's been involved with."
One of the important roles of a councilor is sitting on committees, and Bosiak says he's trying to take a different approach when it comes to committees.
"I've really encouraged the council to try and look at where the organization fits in the city's future, and where the city plays a role in helping the organization in its future. Not to be critical, but to actually analyze where the most efficiency is. And I use that in a number of ways, but mostly, efficient use of time for the council and for the organization, efficient use of resources if the council is in fact funding some of these organizations, and then the efficiency of time of the collective. The whole notion of, are they achieving their mandate, if they are, great, how can the city continue to support that, and if not, how can the city help them to better achieve it."
Bosiak says it's not about restructuring or elimination of committees if it's not necessary, but that is an option if that's what the collective think needs to happen.
"In the current realities of tight budgets and inflation and everything else, it's not that the city doesn't want to fund organizations, it wants to make sure that whatever funding or supports that the city provides, be it staff time, council time, or funding, that it's used as effectively as it possibly can be."
As far as looking into the near future, Bosiak says there is a lot of work that the last council was working on, that's being finalized now.
"What we know from past councils mandates, the whole notion of the support for the enhancements to the lagoon, our sewer system, and the Main Street South Highway redevelopment stuff. That's very complicated and we're right in the middle of finalizing a lot of the details on those two things. So if all goes well, that's what's likely going to be happening this summer."
Bosiak says those projects aren't the only thing to look forward to, however, as the city gets ready to celebrate its 125th anniversary.
"This is also Dauphin's 125th Birthday, so we're trying to do a little bit of planning and work with the Museum, the Arts Centre, the Train Museum, the Historical Society, and others, to try and figure out what we do for our 125th Birthday. That's something that we can really latch on to."
Bosiak finished by talking about the financial situation of the city, and how the area has dealt with finances through the pandemic.
"Just the notion of, we're coming out of the pandemic, we're learning how to live in a world that's been affected by a global situation. So we're figuring that out, the impacts of inflation and all of those other things are impacting our budgeting process for this year. The summaries from last year's budget are looking like we probably are going to be really close to having no deficit or no major surplus, but we're not in the situation like other municipalities that were really blindsided by inflation and things from last year and are dealing with some significant budget deficits from their 2022 operations."
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- Contributed by Sam Brownell
The Russell RCMP seized 920 grams of cocaine and meth, along with a number of guns from a home in Rossburn last weekend.
Russell RCMP received a report of a break-and-enter in progress at a home on Main Street in Rossburn, just after 3 a.m. last Friday, February 3rd. One of the suspects had forcefully broken into the home, but they fled on foot when the resident called the police.
Police patrolled the area and arrested a 32-year-old male from Winnipeg, who said he was with the other suspect, and they were just trying to seek shelter from the cold. Police continued their search, with help from Police Dog Services, but they weren't able to find the other suspect.
The 32-year-old suspect, who was believed to be under the influence of drugs, was lodged in cells overnight and released without a charge the next morning.
Later that day, February 4th, police received more information that led to them drafting a search warrant for a residence on Crocus Road in Rossburn.
When police executed the search warrant, they found 188 grams of cocaine, 732 grams of meth, two loaded restricted firearms, ammunition, cell phones, and other drug-related paraphernalia.
Police arrested a 23-year-old female and a 25-year-old male, both from Winnipeg. They were taken into custody and later released for court scheduled for May 23, 2023, in Rossburn. An investigation is underway.
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- Contributed by Sam Brownell
The Manitoba government is bringing back province-wide Grade 12 exams in English and math starting in the 2023-24 school year.
The tests were suspended during the COVID-19 pandemic and have not been administered since 2020. The reason being that the mixture of in-class and remote learning led to students not receiving equal access to learning and instruction.
Last August, the government had announced plans for less-formal assessments of student achievement in Grade 10. Education Minister Wayne Ewasko says the school system will soon have both.
He says reviving the final exams will be a good way to gauge whether the assessments in the earlier grade are working and if students are improving.
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- Contributed by Alec Woolston
The Town of Swan River Council is holding a Special Meeting in its chambers tonight at 7:30, to go over the town Borrowing Bylaw.
Residents will get the chance to have their input, as the town looks to make upgrades to the Centennial Arena. CAO Derek Poole says this is just a step in the process, and its approval doesn't mean the work will go forward just yet.
"We are proposing to borrow 2.7 million dollars, and what this Bylaw does is allow the town to borrow up to that amount. So it doesn't mean that we are going to go ahead with the project even, it means that it allows us to borrow up to that in the case we move ahead with the project."
The total project is expected to be quite a bit bigger than that however, and Poole says work needs to be done to the Ice Lab, the HVAC systems, roofing, exterior cladding, and some structural and refrigeration architectural repairs.
"The cost of the project is estimated at 7.5 million dollars. The town has applied for an arts culture, sport, and community grant from the province so we're waiting to hear that. We're also contributing monies from our Community Building Fund, and Building Sustainable Communities Fund."
Poole says the Arena is such an important part of any rural Manitoba community, and that's why its important that the work gets done before it's too late.
"We have an MJHL team that operates out of the building. Several under 15, under 13 teams, minor hockey program is run out of it. There's a lot of community programs that use the facility, it's definitely considered a central point."
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- Contributed by Sam Brownell
The Manitoba government has announced that the First Nation Court Worker Program would be taken over by Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak, Southern Chiefs' Organization (SCO), Manitoba Metis Federation, and the Island Lake Tribal Council.
SCO will have court workers in Dauphin, Portage la Prairie, and Selkirk, who will also attend circuit court locations, including those in Bloodvein, Berens River, and other court locations within SCO member Nations.
SCO Grand Chief Jerry Daniels says the work they'll be focused on making sure that those going before the court know everything that's happening.
"Our focus is really on the information about the local resources that are available within the court system, translation services, some of the legal terminology, to ensure that it's fully understood. That those who are coming before the courts understand their rights and responsibilities, and also we want to ensure that there's a lot of respect and empathy for the process, and how it impacts people."
He says the program will add value to their existing restorative justice program, and it will help make sure the system is working, and having a meaningful impact.
"It'll add value to the relationships that are very important when we talk about restorative justice. We have restorative justice in about seven of our communities. They have a relationship and a role with the judges, with the crown attorney, with the defense council, with the sheriff's offices. So they will also sort of work with the court workers in some capacity to strengthen that relationship."
Grand Chief Daniels says the program will hopefully change the status quo that has led to the over-representation of Indigenous people in the criminal justice system.
"The goal is right now, obviously First Nations are the highest represented demographic within the justice system, and we really want to help change that around and hopefully create opportunity for those that are leaving, and also those who are in conflict with the law. We're trying to find a way to keep them focused on their personal development and trying to help them deal with the lasting impacts of what they've experienced in their environment."
More information about SCO's Justice Program can be found on its website here.
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- Contributed by Sam Brownell
February 6th to 10th, 2023, is known as Teacher and Staff Appreciation week in Manitoba.
Superintendent and CEO of Mountain View School Division, Stephen Jaddock, recognizes the work that gets put in every day by the staff the school division employs.
"We just want to thank everyone who plays a part, on a daily basis at Mountain View School Division, ranging from our employees out in the division office, to our crews who work on maintenance, and all of our operations and education coordinators that work tirelessly to make sure that we have a successful school division here in Mountain View", said Jaddock.
The division has schools in 7 communities in the Parkland: Dauphin, Ethelbert, Gilbert Plains, Grandview, Ochre River, Roblin, and Winnipegosis. No matter where your children go to school, they can probably recall a time when a staff member went above and beyond for them.
"We have teachers, educational assistants, and secretaries, going out of their way just to make individuals feel better. Whether it's getting a band-aid for a child hurt at that school, or whether it's somebody waiting for the parent to arrive to pick them up just so they're not alone", Jaddock recalled.
Mountain View School Division employs over 500 people.
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- Contributed by Alec Woolston
The Dauphin Fire Department responded to a vehicle fire shortly after 9 pm on Dunfield Avenue last night.
The vehicle was parked In the driveway, in close proximity to the home, and there was slight damage to the siding. There is no estimate on damages at this time and no injuries to report.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
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- Contributed by 730 CKDM
Around 2:30 a.m. today (February 7th, 2023) the Dauphin RCMP responded to a report of shots fired at a residence in Dauphin.
Members of the Dauphin detachment along with the D Division Police Dog Services attended the scene. It was determined that several shots were fired at the residence, with three vehicles in front of the house hit, and the other bullets entered the home, hitting the walls inside.
Several people were home at the time, but no one was injured in the incident. An investigation is underway, and the RCMP is asking anyone with information to call the Dauphin Detachment at Dauphin RCMP at 204-622-5020, Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-8477, or secure tip online here.
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- Contributed by Sam Brownell
UPDATE:
The roads that were closed yesterday due to weather appear to be back open. Expect lingering icy conditions and drive with caution.
ORIGINAL STORY:
Some roads around the parkland are closed, although Manitoba 511 is not reporting a specific reason for the closure.
The following Highways are closed:
- Highway 5 from Grandview to the Saskatchewan border.
- PTH 83 from Highway 57 (East of Kamsak Sask.), south through Roblin to Russell.
- Highway 16 from the Saskatchewan border, through Russell and Binscarth to East of Foxwarren.
- Highway 45 from Russell, to west of Rossburn.
Other highways in the area are being reported as partially covered or bare, with some seeing reduced visibility. Before planning a trip make sure to check out the Parkview Auto Glass Road Conditions Tab.
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- Contributed by Sam Brownell
A youth has been charged after a child was killed on George Gordon First Nation in Saskatchewan. RCMP were called to a report of an injured person at a home on the First Nation, about an hour and a half west of Yorkton, on Thursday.
When police arrived, they found a child who was pronounced dead at the scene by EMS. He's been identified as a child under 10 from George Gordon First Nation.
The youth who's been charged cannot be identified as per the Youth Criminal Justice Act and is scheduled to appear in Regina provincial court today.
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- Contributed by Sam Brownell
The RCMP, Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre and Ontario Provincial Police will soon launch a fraud prevention campaign focused on emergency/grandparent scams targetting the elderly.
This comes after a significant increase in victim losses from these scams in 2022 when more than 9.2-million dollars was reported lost. That is up from 2021 when the country saw 2.4-million dollars in victim losses. Manitoba was one of the most impacted provinces with over $313,000 in reported losses.
More information from the RCMP is below:
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CAFC) and Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) are launching a fraud prevention campaign, February 6 to 10, 2023, to raise awareness about the significant increase in emergency-grandparent scams targeting Canadian seniors.
In 2022, the CAFC received fraud reports totalling a staggering $530 million in victim losses. This was nearly a 40 per cent increase from the 2021 unprecedented $380 million in losses.
Fraudsters target anyone and everyone, particularly the vulnerable and seniors. In 2022, more than $9.2 million was reported lost to emergency scams, according to the CAFC. This was a drastic increase from $2.4 million in 2021.
Reports from residents indicate the five provinces most impacted in 2022 were:
- Ontario - over $5.4 million in reported losses
- Alberta - over $1.1 million in reported losses
- Quebec - over $732,000 in reported losses
- British Columbia - over $322,000 in reported losses
- Manitoba - over $313,000 in reported losses
It is estimated that only 5-10 per cent of victims report scams and fraud to the CAFC or law enforcement.
What is an emergency scam?
Emergency scams, including variations called "grandparent scams", use urgency and the manipulation of emotions to extort money from victims. In these scams, fraudsters cold call seniors, on landline phones, claiming to be a grandchild, family member, law enforcement officer or lawyer calling on behalf of their loved one. They'll say that the person's loved one was involved in an emergency situation, such as a collision, charged by law enforcement, legal peril, being sick or injured, etc. They demand the senior provide payment immediately for supposed bail, legal fees, fines or other amounts "owed" to stop the family member from going to jail or to get them released from custody. This is a scam.
The fraudsters isolate the victims by informing them that there is a court-imposed gag order, and they're forbidden from discussing the matter. The victims are directed to attend their financial institution to withdraw the requested amount in cash. The fraudsters will then send someone to pick it up from the victim's home or have the victim send the money via courier services. There have also been reports of victims paying with cryptocurrency.
If you fall victim to a fraud or know someone who has, contact your local police service to report the crime and also report it to the CAFC at 1-888-495-8501 or online on the Fraud Reporting System, even if a financial loss did not occur.
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- Contributed by Alec Woolston
