January 7 Agenda and Sports Complex Thoughts

Welcome to 2019! Hope everyone had a great holiday season. It's back to business for Brandon City Council this week, with the first regular meeting of the New Year scheduled for tomorrow (January 7).

Among the items on the agenda are presentations from the Brandon Sport Alliance and Riverbank Discovery Centre and delegations from the Westman Multicultural Festival and the Brandon Downtown Development Corporation.

 

The agenda is below in picture form, and can also be found at http://www.brandon.ca/images/pdf/CouncilAgendas/20190107_Agenda/Agenda_-_January_7_2019.pdf

 

I'll be particularly interested to hear and see the presentation on the Brandon Sport Alliance. For those of you that were here during the municipal election campaign, you'll know that one of my pet peeves when it comes to recreational and sports organizations in Brandon is their inability to work together for the greater good. I believe a Brandon Sport Alliance, if done right, could be a tremendous asset in our community, especially when it comes to recreational delivery.

 

On a side note, I was interested to read the article in The Brandon Sun this week in regards to the proposed Sports Complex. There is no doubt in my mind that the conceptual design for this proposed sports complex needs to be changed from what was originally presented to City Council in 2016.

A Recreation and Community Facilities Master Plan Project is currently being undertaken and, once completed, I'm hopeful a new concept for a complex that is more multi-purpose and available for multiple user groups will be the end result.

 

I certainly have a vision of what I'd like a new Sports Complex in Brandon to look like, and we'll see if my vision lines up with what will be proposed following the completion of the plan.

 

 

 

 

Enquiry on Condition of 500 block 13th Street

During Monday's regular city council meeting, I made an enquiry into the surface break in the 500 block of 13th street.

Here is the full enquiry, and the response...

Enquiry
I note that an underground repair in the 500 Block of 13th St was completed this past fall. Recently it settled leaving an uneven road surface for motorists and a potential safety issue. Was this a City repair and what are the plans to ensure this type of situation does not occur again in the future for any other areas of the City where underground repairs occur over the winter months before proper repairs may be done in the following summer construction season?
 
RESPONSE (provided by Mark Yeomans, Director of Public Works) 
An excavation was undertaken at a residence to address a service line leak.
The dig was done on November 28, 2018.  The private underground portion
was repaired by a private contractor and the City repaired the city portion
on the street.  The site in question in the 500 block of 13th Street has been
filled and leveled twice by City staff as required when the surface becomes
uneven or a safety concern.

Winter excavations on City streets generally freeze solid quickly with
normal winter temperatures resulting in minor settling issues until the
thaw in the spring. The current winter season has seen warmer than
normal December temperatures. While the warmer temperatures are
being enjoyed by the residents of Brandon, our sewer and water excavation
sites have been settling far more this winter than normal.  

The normal procedure that Public Works uses in excavation sites to
monitor site settlement is as follows. The excavation site is added to an
inspection list. The Sewer and Water section will regularly inspect the
excavation sites on the inspection list for signs of settling.  If signs of settling
are noticed, then granular base or asphalt grindings will be added to the
excavation and the area smoothed down by a loader or grader to ensure
the site poses no traffic hazard.

December 17 Agendas

Agendas for Monday's Regular City Council meeting & special meeting are out.

Notable items include 3rd reading to establish a Development Charges bylaw, adoption of the 2019 interim budget citizen appointments to boards & committees, adoption of the 2019 Fee Schedule, and an adjusted derelict vehicle bylaw.

The special meeting held beforehand will deal with the proposed sale of city owned land.

I'll also be making an enquiry regarding the condition of 13th street in the 500 block (just off Victoria Avenue)

Agenda(s) details at http://brandon.ca/council-information/minutes-and-agendas