Rosser residents get progress update

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This article was published 28/06/2022 (1305 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Rosser ward residents received updates on the future of the Park Community Centre, renovations to the Library/Arts building, and more Tuesday evening.

Coun. Kris Desjarlais (Rosser) brought together downtown residents with city staff to address concerns, hear feedback and make presentations behind the Park Community Centre for a ward meeting.

Brandon’s director of planning, Ryan Nickel, gave residents an update on the city’s work to devise a new city plan.

Nickel said it has become clear during the process that Brandonites value an inclusive community with affordable housing that is walkable and easy to navigate.

According to Nickel, the city plan should reach the council table within six to eight months.

Nickel also delivered a presentation on the proposed renovations for the Library/Arts building on Rosser Avenue. Desjarlais said it’s time to create a safer space that’s more accessible and a destination for people around the city to visit.

The goal is to create a shared cultural space not only refreshing the existing tenants, but also including a space for the Brandon General Museum and Archives to move into.

“They have some really good stuff, but it’s a little bit cut up and a little bit hard to navigate,” Nickel said of the museum’s current space.

Nickel said some residents have expressed concern over investing in a project in the middle of downtown when the neighbourhood has so many issues, but he said those issues will only continue if the city doesn’t invest in downtown.

He acknowledged the project by itself won’t fix the downtown’s issues, but he said he believes it’ll start to move the needle.

The city has also heard from residents that the current entrance to the building, through The Town Centre mall, isn’t welcoming, which is why a new entrance off Rosser Avenue is planned.

One of the bigger challenges will be paying for it, especially with inflation driving prices skyward. Nickel hopes construction might start by the latter half of 2023.

The ward residents assembled expressed a belief that in their experience, they don’t feel unsafe downtown and some of the fears expressed in local media are overblown.

Part of making downtown safer and promoting an attitude that it is safe and enjoyable to spend time downtown is to do just that, normalize spending time there.

Deirdre Chisholm, a ward resident and a staff member at the Art Gallery of Southwestern Manitoba, asked Desjarlais who on city council will be the best champion for the project.

“I think it’s going to take somebody who will really walk the walk and talk the talk to really champion this project,” she said. “The more we promote it at the council table, the more we’ll be able to attract investment.”

The councillor said he and Coun. Jeff Fawcett (Assiniboine) — who is running for mayor this fall — will champion the project, but acknowledged having to find a balance between bringing citizens essentials and nice to have but not essential projects amid an uncertain financial situation.

“We can’t pretend that COVID hasn’t hurt downtown, it’s probably put us 10 years back,” said Fawcett, who was a guest at the meeting.

Addressing the downtown image issue, Fawcett said there needs to be a shift in perception between Rosser Avenue and Princess Avenue when people are afraid to be around the library but are dropping their kids off at the YMCA just blocks away every day.

Additionally, he said there’s a captive audience of people dropping their kids off for dance lessons and people going downtown for lessons at Westman Immigrant Services that the capitalists and entrepreneurs in Brandon need to realize exist and provide services to downtown.

Moving to a related topic, Desjarlais brought up the work of the downtown safety and wellness task force.

Changes made as a result of the task force’s work, Fawcett said, is increased security at the Kristopher Campbell Memorial Skate Complex, creating the Fresh Start program with the Brandon Neighbourhood Renewal Corporation to pick-up garbage and to bring back the downtown ambassador program this July and August.

On the to-do list for the task force is adding new washrooms downtown, dealing with graffiti and adding sharps containers for used needles and other biohazardous materials.

Later this week, Fawcett said he and Coun. Jan Chaboyer (Green Acres) will be meeting with professors at Brandon University to see if research can be done on creating a safe and inviting atmosphere for women downtown.

Desjarlais recapped the decision made on the future of the Park Community Centre at the last Brandon City Council meeting, where it was decided to issue a request for proposals for the demolition and replacement of the building.

“The council will be making not just a decision on this community centre, but all community centres,” Desjarlais said of the project. “I believe it’s OK for us to stray slightly from our master plan, and I think our community benefits from our community centre.”

One community member said he thought for a while there wasn’t a board running the community centre and that he’d never heard of events going on or found notices in his mailbox.

Eldon Schmitz, a member of the centre’s board, said the man should expect something in his mailbox very soon.

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