‘Outrageous’ number of new things to learn at AMM’s spring convention, delegates say

Municipal officials attending this week’s Association of Manitoba Municipalities convention in Brandon said the annual spring gathering is an invaluable way to make them more effective in their communities.

Scott Phillips, a councillor in the Rural Municipality of Sifton, said the information sessions during the conference present an “outrageous” number of new things to learn.

“There’s always something new that is exciting, whether it’s a motivational or inspirational or educational, you just get so much out of it,” said Phillips, who also serves as AMM’s vice-president.

He said it’s a good opportunity for municipal representatives to talk to people and build connections.

“Any tips you can come up with, like a grant on a playground or skate park or dog park, anything, this is where it’s all at,” Phillips said. “If you’ve got a question, you can go talk to them.”

“It’s endless amounts of knowledge.”

This year’s spring convention featured two keynote speakers, a large trade show and multiple breakout sessions on different topics.

While resolutions are only voted on at fall conventions, the spring edition allows representatives to talk to their counterparts in other areas of the province in preparation for introducing resolutions at regional meetings in the summer.

“You can go talk to three or four RMs and say, ‘Would you guys be interested in sponsoring this?’ and, ‘What do you think about this proposed resolution?’ So you get the field work done now, you’re getting it massaged out and we can send it out.”

Russ Gawluk, reeve of the Rural Municipality of Reynolds, said the convention helps him and other elected officials learn about a variety of things that can help in their positions.

“It’s learning, it’s networking. We have some councillors here, and they’ve been in council for 25 or 30 years,” Gawluk said. “So a new person doesn’t have to reinvent the wheel. We can network with the experienced ones.”

He said with 137 municipalities across Manitoba, there’s almost nothing that can happen that’s new, which is helpful for all councils.

He described the convention as “a total package.”

The trades floor includes vendors for industries such as road building, playgrounds, insurance and law.

If the convention didn’t exist, Gawluk said his job “would be extremely more difficult.”

“The councils would have to somehow come up with their questions and then find out where to get the answers, rather than being here. It’s like going to a shopping centre instead of a mom-and-pop store,” Gawluk said.

“This has everything.”

He said the spring convention allows for the “investigation” stage of resolutions to take place.

Resolutions that are passed in the fall determine priority issues and allow the AMM to lobby governments and organizations.

Todd Burton, the City of Brandon’s general manager of operations, said from an administrator’s standpoint, the convention is helpful to learn new processes or technology.

“I was looking at different equipment that could help us maintain the roads better for our streets crews,” Burton said. “Maybe things in the future could help us clear the sidewalks more efficiently. There’s a couple of pool companies here.”

Burton said the convention gives him more things to add to his toolbox, and saves the city from having to seek out other shows or researching topics on its own.

The convention ran from Tuesday to Thursday, drawing hundreds of delegates from municipalities around Manitoba.

The fall convention is slated for Nov. 24-26, also at the Keystone Centre in Brandon.

» alambert@brandonsun.com