Source: Brandon Police Service Media Release On February 21, 2022, at approximately 9:00 am, police responded to a report of an intoxicated male who left a business, then proceeded to drive a vehicle.  Police located the vehicle and conducted a traffic stop in the 200 block of 18th street N after police observed the vehicle make an illegal U-turn, and drive on a sidewalk. The 22-year-old male driver was arrested.  He provided samples of his breath more than three times the legal limit.  The male was lodged at Brandon Police Service and will be released on charges of Driving While Ability Impaired and Driving with More Than 80 mgs of Alcohol in Blood once sober.

Source: Brandon Police Service Media Release At 5:20 a.m. today officers conducted a vehicle stop in the 3600 block of Richmond Avenue. As the investigation proceeded the officers located a small amount of meth, cocaine, and fentanyl. One of the occupants was a 41 year old male from rural Manitoba who acknowledged possession of the drugs. He was released to appear in court in May, and faces three counts of possession of the listed drugs.

Manitoba Transportation and Infrastrucute (MTI) has initiated construction work for the Daly Overpass Project. Construction is now beginning and will last until Summer 2024. Two lanes of traffic over the Daly Overpass (one in each direction) will be maintained throughout the project period, with a few minor exceptions for brief periods. Please note the following as it relates to construction activities on McDonald Avenue and Stickney Avenue between 17th St N and 19th St N (see map below): From February 22, 2022 – July 1, 2022, McDonald Avenue and Stickney Avenue will be closed to vehicular traffic between 17th St N and 19th St N • Construction, including piling activity, in this area is expected to begin in March 2022 and will last for up to a month; noise and vibration can be expected generally between 7 AM and 7 PM daily • Sewer work will take place during the same period. While sewer and water service will continue uninterrupted, residents and business owners may occasionally experience discoloured water. Discolouration of water occurs due to changes in flow, but does not impact safety or potability of the water • Detours will be in place as illustrated on the map on reverse; local access will be provided at all times • The vacant land immediately west of Livingstone Landscaping will serve as a construction staging area for the duration of the construction project; a second staging area is located south of the CP rail line on the site of the former Kullberg’s warehouse building Project updates will be provided at the following link: https://www.gov.mb.ca/mit/wms/structures/daly_overpass/index.html

The Brandon Area Community Foundation distributed community support of over $964,000 throughout Brandon and Southwestern Manitoba in 2021. The foundation supports all aspects of life in the region making grants to a wide variety of worthy causes. The Brandon Area Community Foundation has given support to several projects across Southwestern Manitoba. These grants covered areas of arts & culture, environment, education, health & wellness, and community activities throughout the Westman region. In addition to the generous donations received from individuals, organizations, and businesses, BACF was the recipient of the Tim Hortons Smile Cookie Campaign in 2021. All Smile Cookies were sold for $1 with the full $1 from each generously donated to the foundation. The weeklong campaign raised over $39,000 including a one-day cookie sales fund matching by the Cardinal Foundation. Michelle Hood, Grant Chair for BACF said, “Despite the ongoing challenges we faced in the pandemic, individuals and businesses continued to step up and support the Brandon Area Community Foundation. Thanks to this generosity the foundation was able to continue making a difference in groups and organizations across Westman.” Last year also included the launch of two new high school scholarship programs through BACF. The first combined resources from the United Way of Brandon and the Brandon Area Community Foundation presenting three Youth in Philanthropy scholarships. The second program was the Irv Powers Memorial Baseball Scholarships that will be awarded annually to graduating students who are current members of Brandon Minor Baseball or Westman Softball and demonstrate academic achievement, community involvement and leadership skills 2021 BACF Highlights Grant to ACC Prairie Innovation Centre $500,000 combined donation with Gord & Diane Peters Grant to Brandon Seniors for Seniors Co-op $10,000 for their Technology Access Program for Seniors Crane Steel $10,000 donation to celebrate their 40th Anniversary in business. Grant to Keystone Agriculture and Recreation Centre Inc. $25,000 towards a new multi-use facility. Anonymous grant to Prairie Oasis Senior Centre for $45,000 Grant to Souris River Recreation Commission $60,000 towards the Wawanesa Arena Ice Plant Replacement. Grant to Valley Life Recreation $22,500 towards Squirrel Hills Trail Park. Grant to Virden Skate Park $25,000 to build a 6,500 square foot skate park. The grants provided by BACF are possible thanks to generous gifts from local donors from all walks of life. Community foundations pool and endow (permanently invest) all gifts and the income earned supports a variety of projects within the foundation’s catchment area. The original contributions are never spent, ensuring a lasting legacy for donors and a permanent source of support for the community. For a full listing of all grants distributed, please visit our website at bacf.ca.

Brandon’s two-term Mayor Rick Chrest announced today that he will not seek re-election leading up to Manitoba’s municipal elections slated for October 26, 2022. Chrest was first elected in October of 2014 and subsequently acclaimed to his second term in 2018. Previously Rick had served 11 years as University Ward Councillor from 1995 to 2006, 8 of those as Deputy Mayor. Chrest noted, “This has certainly been the biggest honour of my life to be selected to serve the fabulous community where I was born and raised.” He went on to say, “However, after a combined 19 years on Council it is time for my wife and I to focus on the next chapter of our life which will devote even more time to family. Our daughter now resides in Kamloops, BC and we recently welcomed our first granddaughter. The Mayor’s job is pretty confining, so we’ll look forward to getting to see them more often.” The Chrests still have two sons at Brandon University, one of whom has a physical disability, and continuing to help their education journey is a priority as well. He added, “Besides, I’ll be 63 in April so I want to leave some gas in the tank to pursue these other things in our life.” Rick highlighted some of the accomplishments of his two Councils. “Near the top of the list for me is how incredibly collegial, collaborative and constructive our Councils have been. I believe we significantly changed the tone and culture of our municipality and I hear more compliments from citizens about that than almost anything else. They like our atmosphere of doing our job without too much drama or rancor and we generally stay productive. I’m very grateful for the support and contribution of every Councillor in this regard.” Similarly high on Mayor Chrest’s highlight list would be Brandon’s record on fiscal management. In the face of raising costs, increased service demands and typically frozen government funding, the Councils Chrest has led have kept a sustained tight control on tax increases to benefit residents and businesses. Chrest noted, “We’re turning in a grand total of 4.64% increase in taxes for the 8 years combined which is 0.58% average and less than one-third of inflation. Even more proudly I can say we’ve done so while maintaining or enhancing all services and tackling the most robust era of capital and infrastructure investment in our history.” Chrest also commented on the journey through the Covid 19 virus. “When you’re Mayor of a good sized city like Brandon you anticipate you’ll face emergencies such as floods and fires and storms, which we certainly have. However most of us don’t dream of navigating the likes of a global pandemic. I can say that I’m extremely proud of our community and their general response. The loss of lives, the unfavorable impacts on business and livelihoods and citizens’ mental health has been extremely tragic. However I’ve also witnessed the most profound display of the resiliency of the human spirit. It’s been a privilege to be the Mayor of a community who has generally been constructive, caring and kind through all of this.” Mayor Chrest also provided a background paper that touched on several other highlights although he emphasized that he has 8 solid months of Council work ahead and there will be time this fall to more fully reflect. Rick closed his comments by sending out a challenge to his community to seriously consider becoming involved in running for Mayor, City Councillor or School Board Trustee for this fall. “I would highly encourage our citizens to consider running for office this year. Certainly it’s challenging work, but it’s highly rewarding and our community needs a diverse group of good people to keep putting up their hand to serve their community.” Mayor Chrest concluded, “I want to thank our community and my Councillors and administration from the bottom of my heart for providing me so much engagement, inspiration and collaboration to allow me to serve this wonderful city for the past 8 years as Mayor. Moreover, I’ll be forever grateful to my incredible wife Karen and our family for their support, encouragement and love throughout the journey we’ve taken together.” (Submitted)