Potential change to Neepawa's snow removal

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Neepawa Town Council - Tuesday Sept. 5, 2017

Eoin Devereux
The Neepawa Press

Neepawa could soon be searching for a new company to be responsible for snow removal. On Tuesday, Sept. 5, municipal officials confirmed that F. Kozak and Sons Ltd had made a formal request to withdraw from the existing agreement.

Manager of Operations, Denis Saquet indicated that the current deal is until Dec. 2018. The two sides signed this agreement back in 2013. No reason for Kozak wishing to step back from snow removal was provided during the meeting. Council voted to table the request in order to review whether it would create new financial implications; and if so, who would be responsible for those additional costs.

Land sale

The Town of Neepawa recently received an offer from McDonalds Restaurants of Canada to purchase a portion of municipal property. McDonalds had expressed interest in expanding northward from its existing building, located at 75 Main St. E. The reason given for the request was the restaurant’s desire to provide more space for its drive thru on the north side of the property. Council heard the request and decided to proceed with the sale of Lot 4, Block 1 to McDonalds at the sale price of $40,000, plus GST, with a balance of 10 per cent to be held in trust.  McDonalds indicated that it would like to proceed with the expansion plans during the fall, but an exact date was not made public.

Mayor’s report
Mayor Adrian de Groot provided an update to the public on the activity around Town Hall during the summer and its focus heading into the autumn. He stated that the technical aspects of the new fire hall are currently being finalized. He also reiterated a desire for the development of a comprehensive plan for the upgrade of municipal infrastructure. De Groot expressed optimism in relation to working with the Federation of Canadian Municipalities and the initiative called the “Municipal Asset Management Program” to move that forward.

Misc.
- E.F. Moon Construction Ltd. has received the municipal contract for a water main extension at Mountain Avenue for $404,499.90 plus GST. No timeline for that work to move ahead was discussed publicly at the council meeting.

- The Town of Neepawa approved first reading of a by-law to close a portion of Cameron Street. The reason provided within the by-law for the decision was described that the municipal road is no longer required for public purposes and it is necessary and desirable and in the public interest that the road be closed. The by-law must now be sent to the province for approval, before second and third reading can proceed.

- The Town also approved first reading of a by-law authorizing an agreement with the RM of Rosedale for the supply of water to the municipality.