Discussions

Agree wholeheartedly!!! Minnedosa has a lot of problems that need immediate attention, the new rec centre is a luxury they simply cannot afford.

Just wondering about the companies that did the feasibility studies, do you know how to contact them or where they are from or any contact information. Who paid for the study and then didn't use the information?

hisluvmonkey said "Agree wholeheartedly!!! Minnedosa has a lot of problems that need immediate attention, the new rec centre is a luxury they simply cannot afford. "

Unfortunately, this project seems to be the #1 priority for the present council.  
As for the study, it was commissioned by Council and paid for by us, the taxpayers of Minnedosa. and it sits collecting dust like so many other costly studies.

If you are interested I, can send you copies of the two studies done by jHarper.  
They are no longer available on Minnedosa Town website. I don't know if it is appropriate to give my email address here, but I don't know another way.  
Send me your email address and I'll mail you copies. klassenh@mymts.net

rpbilliaert@gmail.com would love to see them as we have the same sort of situation in our town.

What a 'whitewash' on the Minnedosa Financial Plan 2017 in both the Minnedosa Tribune and The Neepawa Banner. Obviously neither looked at the Fiancial Plan. Much was made of the $130,000 donation to the Primary Medical Clinic in Minnedosa; no mention of the $150,000 to the Arena Reserve, the total of which is over $1.4 million. If council really wanted to support the clinic and set a good example of priorities, they should take the majority of the money in the Arena Reserve and apply it to the medical clinic. After all, any body involved with hockey is much more likely to need medical services.

The Municipal Board of Manitoba  
1144 – 363 Broadway Ave.  
WINNIPEG, Manitoba.  
R3C 3N9  
May 19, 2017  
Municipal Board:  
Attached please find a copy of my letter to Minnedosa Town Council in regards to my objection the 2017 Financial Plan. Council has included in the Financial Plan ‘Temporary Financing’ for the Minnedosa Regional Events Centre. You approved this borrowing with conditions. Those conditions have not been met, yet the borrowing appears in the Financial Plan. It appears it is now only a small step from appearing on our Tax Notices. Since you approved this by-law on conditions, are you monitoring that the conditions are met?  
Thank you for your attention to my concern.

HermanKlassen said "The Municipal Board of Manitoba   1144 – 363 Broadway Ave.   WINNIPEG, Manitoba.   R3C 3N9   May 19, 2017   Municipal Board:   Attached please find a copy of my letter to Minnedosa Town Council in regards to my objection the 2017 Financial Plan. Council has included in the Financial Plan ‘Temporary Financing’ for the Minnedosa Regional Events Centre. You approved this borrowing with conditions. Those conditions have not been met, yet the borrowing appears in the Financial Plan. It appears it is now only a small step from appearing on our Tax Notices. Since you approved this by-law on conditions, are you monitoring that the conditions are met?   Thank you for your attention to my concern. "

I sure hope someone at the provincial levels pays careful attention to your letter and investigates this-something doesn't sound quite right.

Thanks Herman for all your efforts. Can't remember what the conditions for the borrowing were, could you refesh my memory?  
Hope I'm wrong, but somehow fear this borrowing will just be rubber-stamped. The Municipal Board is made up of provincially-appointees, don't know how much fiscal management experience they have.

Borrowing By-Law 2541 was passed by council in January 2017. The condition(s) are stipulated in article 8."THAT unless the Council of the Town of Minnedosa secures sufficient funding from the  
Province of Manitoba and/or the Federal Government for the project, it will not proceed with the project."  
"DONE AND PASSED as a By-law of the Town of Minnedosa by Council duly assembled at the  
Council Chambers of the Town of Minnedosa this 10th day of January, 2017.  
THE TOWN OF MINNEDOSA"  
I can send you a copy of the entire by-law if you like.  
Last year council posted the financial plan on their website. This year they did not. The reason given was to blame it on 'technical problems'. I am sure that the reason(s) were more sinister than that. I picked up a hard copy from the town office before the hearing on May 9.

Right, I remember that now, thanks. Pretty big condition to ignore, it should stick out like a sore thumb. And thanks to you for pointing that out to the Municipal Board  
So, guess we just hope they do their job and reject the borrowing by-law. If not, we will know for sure the rules mean absolutely nothing.

MANITOBA MUNICIPAL BOARD REPLY TO MY LETTER RE. CONDITIONS  
 
(exact copy from letter follows)  
 
RE: TOWN OF MINNEDOSA BY-LAW 2541, OUR FILE NO. 15E7-0002  
 
We ar in receipt of your letter dated May 19, 2017.  
The Municipal Board through it Order E-15-018 dated March 31, 2015 approved By-law No.2541.  
That Orders speaks for itself.  
 
The Board does not have a borrowing By-law from the Town of Minnedosa regarding any borrowing arising from By-law No.2541.  
 
We return to you your o:bjection to the Financial Plan of the Town of Minnedosa as the Board is unable to address it.  
 
Yours truly,  
 
Brenda Loewen  
Acting Secretary  
 
What do you think this means??

It is difficult to believe that an exact copy would have that many spelling errors.

HermanKlassen said "MANITOBA MUNICIPAL BOARD REPLY TO MY LETTER RE. CONDITIONS     (exact copy from letter follows)     RE: TOWN OF MINNEDOSA BY-LAW 2541, OUR FILE NO. 15E7-0002     We ar in receipt of your letter dated May 19, 2017.   The Municipal Board through it Order E-15-018 dated March 31, 2015 approved By-law No.2541.   That Orders speaks for itself.     The Board does not have a borrowing By-law from the Town of Minnedosa regarding any borrowing arising from By-law No.2541.     We return to you your o:bjection to the Financial Plan of the Town of Minnedosa as the Board is unable to address it.     Yours truly,     Brenda Loewen   Acting Secretary     What do you think this means?? "

The letter is confirming to you that you are correct: the Board does not have any borrowing by-law from the town under By-law No. 2541. The last sentence indicates that the Board is also not able (willing?) to act as a "police officer" and take the town task with this situation. Next step, research two points: 1.whether the Municipal Board actually has any capacity for enforcement or are they just a rubber stamp organization. 2. at what point will they (if at all) step into the fray?

Hello Chris and/or Ken:  
If you are on holidays, I wish you a good one. You can answer my query when you are back in the office. I am puzzled about the Borrowing By-Law 2541 that council passed in January of 2017. The borrowing was approved by The Municipal Board on condition that the Provincial and Federal Governments would contribute to the project (MREC). To my knowledge there are no commitments from either of these senior levels. Yet council passed this by-law and also i:ncluded it in 'Interim Financing' in the 2017 Financial Plan. How is this possible? It appears that The Municipal Board has not been presented with this by-law and has not approved it. What is the process? When will we see this tax appear on our Tax Notices? Could this happen without The Municipal Board approval? It would seem to me, that if the by-law is not approved by The Municipal Board, it is NULL AND VOID.  
 
I just recently heard a rumor that council has signed a contract with Crane Steel to build the arena. Is there any truth to this? I have checked the council minutes and find no motion to this effect.  
 
Thank you for your reply. Have a great summer.

Hello:  
I had a telephone conversation with Chris, in regards to the Borrowing By-law 2541, on August 21. He says that the reason for the by-law at this time is to avoid having to hold another public hearing. He calls it 'an administrative formality'. Though it is in the 2017 Financial Plan, no funds were advanced to it. It seems that if the Manitoba and federal governments give even a dollar, Minnedosa taxpayers are on the hook for millions without any further approval from the municipal board.

wow

Minnedosa needs to work on replacing their recreational facilities. It is fantastic that they have taken their time to get what they need and can also afford. Too bad every community has people that have to be negative and belittle those that try to improve their community.

This would be great news for the community to get the project started. Everything seems to be in place to start, but not until government funds are announced. Hopefully they announce some more funding projects soon because the current arena is long overdue to be replaced.

No it's not great news as there is no provincial or federal funding in sight, yet council has merrily gone ahead and hired Crane Steel Structures to do a design-build proposal.  
Who does that in real life??? and who else but the taxpayer will end up paying for this ego trip.

Jon and Scott:  
In The Minnedosa Tribune August 11, 2017 edition under “MREC Committee Selects Design-Build Contractor” you state “the local portion of fundraising for MREC sits at $2,766,774”. You did not state clearly that this i:ncludes $1.4 million of Minnedosa taxes. You did not even acknowledge the Minnedosa taxpayers. How rude! How ungrateful! Obviously you do not know the difference between ‘furndraising’ and TAXES. Fundraising contributions are voluntary: taxes are not. If a property owner does not pay their taxes for two years, the property can be sold at a tax sale. That is very heavy handed.  
You already wasted a million tax dollars and we don’t even have a hole in the ground to collect rain water. A strong testament to the ineptitude of MREC proponents. Not only that, you are counting on the $3.5 million debenture to be paid for by Minnedosa taxpayers. Minnedosa taxpayers will be paying for the debenture plus interest, the annual operating losses, allowance for reserve, plus free services. Your fundraising is pretty well stalled at about one million and this i:ncludes a receivable and deferred revenue. It is questionable what constitutes the receivable and deferred revenue. Receivables and deferred revenues often do not materialize. Clearly there is no wide community support for MREC.  
A few years ago three neighbouring municipalities pledged $50,000 each, to the Minnedosa Regional Events Centre (MREC). This was prior to the latest round of municipal amalgamations. One of the municipalities rescinded its commitment and since the amalgamations there has been no word from the other municipalities. No matter, it was a pittance one time donation. If the neighbouring municipalities saw MREC as a worthwhile project, they would come toe to toe with Minnedosa taxpayers. Harper mentions a few times in his report (attached) that Minnedosa taxpayers are the only ones that will be paying. It is obvious that our neighbouring municipalities do not see MREC as doable or worthwhile. THERE IS NO REGION!  
The $3.5 million debenture, for an arena that sits vacant for seven months of the year, and is used by a very small number of residents, will very likely be detrimental in future to the fiscal ability of Minnedosa to provide essential services for all residents. Could what happened in Rivers happen in Minnedosa? Very likely.  
The Municipal Board was derelict in approving the debenture, even with conditions. If the Manitoba or Federal government approve MREC, they will be culpable when Minnedosa can not provide essential services to all its residents because of fiscal constraints.  
Minnedosa Town Council would have us believe that our present arena is about to crumble. NOT SO! The engineer that did a walk-through in 2013 makes no mention of any structural concerns in his report (available in Minnedosa Town Office), indeed he lauds the phenomenal base on which the arena is built. Council told the Brandon Sun, that it is “all wood construction”. This clearly tells us that council has no knowledge of construction.  
I challenge you to compare Minnedosa Town Council’s summary of jHarper’s report and the actual report. You will easily realize the severe lack of reading comprehension and intent to deceive.  
A few years ago Neepawa considered the possibility of a new arena. It was decided it would be too costly and instead chose to revitalize their current arena. Neepawa with a larger population and a more active hockey program than Minnedosa, could not afford a new arena, how can Minnedosa, a dwindling community, afford a new arena without jeopardizing its fiscal ability for future essential services.  
You say, “...if we can get the provincial and federal government to step up with anything...”. Let’s hope that never happens. It is time for you and your supporters to step down. GOUDGING THE MINNEDOSA TAXPAYERS IS NOT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT!

I know this is not fun for you, so I thank you for being so diligent in keeping us all informed of the real story about MREC.

Spaghettie said "Minnedosa needs to work on replacing their recreational facilities. It is fantastic that they have taken their time to get what they need and can also afford. Too bad every community has people that have to be negative and belittle those that try to improve their community. "

Unfortunately the people that have to be negative are overtaking the people trying to improve their community. Nobody likes their taxes going up for something that isn't needed. If the focus was on improving what the town has instead of spending money they don't and will never have the town would be in better shape.

You have worked tirelessly to try and get the facts out to the public and it's not easy to oppose the "establishment". Unfortunately there are few people with the courage to stand up and do this.  
But I fear this council (as it approaches the last year of its mandate) will rush ahead to get shovels in the ground with or without funding.

Friends:  
MREC proponents want to improve the community, that's what they say. They must feel awful having wasted a million Minnedosa tax dollars and not have an ice cube to show for it. I am sure they have all spent many sleepless nights thinking how to make up this waste. Well, I checked their charity return on the CRA website and find they have almost a million dollars in their bank account. So here is a solution to their dilemma.  
The amount in MREC bank account would cover the bulk of the wasted million and could be transferred to Minnedosa taxpayers. This would clear their bank account and their conscience. Then they can all go home, have a good nights sleep, and Minnedosa taxpayers can improve their town by paving streets, replacing old equipment, replacing old water and sewer lines, and council could make an additional $300K contribution to the primary care clinic. Now that would improve the community. In addition Minnedosa taxpayers would save untold millions in future taxes. Truly a WIN-WIN-WIN!  
 
You may look up the MREC charity returns at: http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/ebci/haip/srch/t3010form22quickview-eng.action?r=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cra-arc.gc.ca%3A80%2Febci%2Fhaip%2Fsrch%2Fadvancedsearchresult-eng.action%3Fn%3DMinnedosa%2BRegional%2BEvents%2BCentre%26amp%3Bb%3D%26amp%3Bq%3D%26amp%3Bs%3Dregistered%26amp%3Bd%3D%26amp%3Be%3D%2B%26amp%3Bc%3D%26amp%3Bv%3D%2B%26amp%3Bo%3D%26amp%3Bz%3D%26amp%3Bg%3D%2B%26amp%3Bt%3D%2B%26amp%3By%3D%2B%26amp%3Bp%3D1&fpe=2015-12-31&b=805168499RR0001&n=MinnedosaRegionalEventsCentreInc.  
It might be of particular interest how much they have spent on fundraising.

Was that 'wanted' or 'wasted'? What do you support out there? You always seem to be on here complaining so why don't you run for council in the next election? I am certain that if everyone out there feels the same then you would be assured of a seat.

Spaghettie said "Was that 'wanted' or 'wasted'? What do you support out there? You always seem to be on here complaining so why don't you run for council in the next election? I am certain that if everyone out there feels the same then you would be assured of a seat. "

And if I remember right, he ran on this exact platform and came in second last.

Spaghettie said "Was that 'wanted' or 'wasted'? What do you support out there? You always seem to be on here complaining so why don't you run for council in the next election? I am certain that if everyone out there feels the same then you would be assured of a seat. "

I,for one,am very thankful for these posts.I have lived in this town for 13 years and have been watching it slowly decay and go downhill.His posts are informative of the waste (sorry,grammar police) of my tax dollars to the community which seems to go nowhere except to this project when it could be improving the badly needed upkeep of the infrastructure.Another thread has described the town as "dumpy" and thats too bad because it could bounce back become the beautiful community it once was.The posts are informative to those who are unaware of what is really going with those who run the town.I thank you.