Brandon, MB – Thanks to continued support from community sponsors, Brandon Transit is, once again, offering New Year’s Eve revellers a safe, FREE ride as they ring in the New Year at festivities across Brandon on December 31st. From 6 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 31st (New Year’s Eve) to 1 a.m. on Monday, Jan. 1st (New Year’s Day), Brandon Transit will run its buses on a regular modified (hourly) service.  During those hours, it will be free to get on or off the bus at any of those route’s designated stops. Once again supporting Brandon Transit’s efforts as program sponsor is Manitoba Public Insurance. Brandon Transit also thanks its local media partners Q Country 91.5 FM & 880 AM/94.7 Star FM, 96.1 BOB FM/101.1 The Farm, and the Brandon Sun for their assistance in promoting this important public service to the community. This is the seventh consecutive year Brandon Transit has offered its free New Year’s Eve Ride Program. Since the program began, almost 3,500 free complimentary rides have been provided! To plan your NYE travel route or for more information on Brandon Transit’s regular modified service routes, visit www.brandontransit.ca.

Brandon Police Service Media Release Yesterday afternoon at 2:30 p.m., police received a call that three males were attempting to break into vehicles at a business in the area of 18th Street and Brandon Avenue. The suspects were confronted by a citizen who held one male in custody while the other two suspects fled. The two who fled then returned to assist their co-accused and assaulted the citizen who had intervened. The citizen was struck with a block of ice and with a pair of brass knuckles in possession of one of the accused, and suffered minor injuries. One accused is an 18 year old male from Souris who was detained for Breach of the Peace, but will face no charges as a result of the investigation. Two males from Brandon are facing charges. One 21 year old man is charged with Possession of a Prohibited Weapon, Assault with a Weapon, and Breach of Probation. The second male, aged 19 years, is facing charges of Assault with a Weapon and Mischief to Property. All were detained at BCC and the two facing charges will appear in Brandon Provincial Court this morning.

Royal Canadian Mounted Police in Manitoba Week Two of the RCMP Holiday Checkstop Program, from December 11, 2017 to December 17, 2017, has resulted in 2306 vehicles checked across Manitoba during 50 Checkstops. Results from both Checkstops and regular patrol include: • 23 people charged with a Criminal Code Impaired Driving offence (22 alcohol-related and 1 drug-related) • The highest blood/alcohol reading reported was 230 mgs% (0.230-almost 3x legal limit)  • 10 alcohol-related tiered administrative roadside suspensions • 476 traffic-related provincial statute (Highway Traffic Act) charges laid (majority for speeding and seatbelt offences) along with 140 warnings for various offences • 15 Liquor & Gaming Control Act (LGCA) offences • 4 Other Criminal Code Driving offences There were no traffic-related fatalities during the second week of the program. Last year during week two, there was one traffic-related fatality. RCMP members conducted 52 Checkstops, checking 2680 vehicles. The combination of Checkstops and regular patrol resulted in 30 people being charged with Criminal Code Impaired Driving offences.  

Brandon, MB – The City of Brandon’s Sanitation Section wishes to inform the public that as of Friday, December 29th, 2017, the public recycling depot located in the northeast corner of the Landmark Cinemas parking lot at 1570-18th Street will be permanently closed to the public and all bins removed. While the location has been a long-standing recycling drop-off in the City of Brandon, the ongoing re-development of the Shoppers Mall property has brought about this necessity for this closure. The City of Brandon would like to take this opportunity to thank the property owner for allowing it to use the parking lot as a depot location, and asks that all residents respect this change in operation and refrain from dropping off any materials at this location after Friday, December 29th, 2017. While Sanitation officials actively pursue an alternate recycling depot location to serve the City’s South End, a number of temporary measures will be put in place to ensure adequate recycling capacity is available throughout the community. Additional recycling bins will be placed at the depot located adjacent to the northeast corner of the intersection of 34th Street and Victoria Avenue, and recycling bins will also be added temporarily to the current compost and yard waste depot located in the northeast laneway at the intersection of First Street and Richmond Avenue. Residents may also drop acceptable recycling product at the depot located in the parking lot of Brandon’s Community Sportsplex (30 Knowlton Drive), or they may take it directly to the Eastview Landfill site, located in the 3300-Block of Victoria Avenue East. A Christmas Tree drop-off depot location will again be offered in the southeast corner of the Keystone Centre grounds (enter via Richmond Avenue) from Wednesday, December 20th through to Thursday, January 11th. The public is asked to remove all plastic bags, decorations and lighting from trees prior to discarding. After Wednesday, January 11th, all Christmas trees should be disposed of directly at the Eastview Landfill site. And a final note for Brandon residents that the Eastview Landfill will be closed on Monday, December 25th and Monday, January 1st. Regular curbside collection will occur on Tuesday, December 26th and on Tuesday, January 2nd. More information about the Eastview Landfill’s winter hours of operation can be found at http://www.brandon.ca/sanitation/landfill/landfill-overview.

BRANDON – An anonymous couple has found a fitting, and very generous, way to recognize Brandon University’s (BU’s) 50th year. The couple gifted shares to the University valued at approximately $50,000. Written on the donation form was, “Happy Birthday BU!” “Brandon University is a high-quality jewel, a treasure,” said one of the donors. “I wanted to honour the quality of the people at BU – the staff and faculty, as well as the students. The students are extraordinary!” The donors have asked that $15,000 be used to establish an endowment that will support student needs in the School of Music. The endowment will fund initiatives such as student travel, instrument repair and maintenance, practice studios and more. The remainder of the gift will be used to create an endowment fund to support travel opportunities and experiences for students in all disciplines across BU. “This is a wonderful reminder that the School of Music and Brandon University are able to reach people in such meaningful ways that they make generous donations like this,” said Greg Gatien, Dean of Music at BU. “Our donors do so much to help us, support us, and inspire us.  This gift means so much to our faculty and students, and will be a great help to them as they strive towards their musical goals.” Founded as Brandon College in 1899, BU received its charter as a university in 1967, and is spending the 2017-18 year celebrating the 50-year milestone. To mark the occasion the 50th Year Fund has been launched, giving donors that chance to give to any of the University’s faculties (Arts, Education, Health Studies and Science) or the School of Music. Donors may also choose to give to the Brandon College Heritage Fund to support the preservation of the history and archives of the College. Donors who make a gift on or before December 31 will receive a charitable tax receipt for 2017. Charitable tax receipts that can be used for 2018 will be issued for gifts made on or after January 1. “We have received wonderful support from donors and the community this year, and we expect that to continue in the coming weeks and months,” said BU Development Officer Shawna English. “The support of our donors is vital in keeping BU vibrant and in providing a great experience for our students.” The donation is one of two significant gifts made to the University recently. Members of the BU President’s Administrative Council have pledged a total of $50,000 to the Brandon University Foundation in response to the BU50 staff and faculty fundraising appeal. For more information on donating to Brandon University, please visit BrandonU.ca/Give.