Tame takes on challenger in Ward 10 race

Incumbent Ward 10 Coun. Tyson Tame is facing a political newcomer in Mitesh Patel in the upcoming municipal election.

Tame, a 53-year-old realtor, said drainage and aging infrastructure in the Green Acres neighbourhood are his biggest concerns ahead of the Oct. 28 election.

Pedestrian safety is also a major concern, he said.

Tame said the outgoing edition of council was successful in improving pedestrian safety with flashing beacons at crosswalks and improving sidewalk connection, but that more work is still needed.

“There are some areas in that southern portion of Ward 10 that don’t have any sidewalks,” he said, adding that he has advocated for a raised walking corridor on Ninth Street from Richmond to Aberdeen avenues.

Tame also said he would like to see transit services improved in the ward, as there are currently no buses on Portola Drive, despite a large number of students who live there.

Ward 10, formerly the Green Acres ward, is the city’s southeasternmost constituency. It covers land east of Ninth Street, with the northern boundary starting at Richmond Avenue on the west and then following Park Avenue East, Richmond Avenue East, Victoria Avenue East and the Assiniboine River. The ward extends well past the Canada Packers plant to the east.

Patel lives in the ward, while Tame does not.

Patel, 39, said his biggest concerns are walkability on Park Avenue East and improvements to the road’s intersection with Richmond Avenue East.

“Park Avenue East from Richmond all the way to First Street does not have a pedestrian lane or a cycling lane, so that’s a concern brought by the residents during my campaign. So that’s something in top of my mind,” said Patel, who owns a business in the city and works for the University of Manitoba’s satellite residency campus in Brandon.

He said he doesn’t think there’s enough demand for a bus route on the industrial street, but that for people who do use transit, there should be a safe way for them to get to the nearest bus stop.

The city and province should also consider widening or adding turning lanes at Park’s intersection with Richmond, as semi trucks that turn at the intersection have limited room and other drivers often have to move out of the way. Traffic lights at that intersection would also be beneficial, he said.

He said consulting traffic experts would be a good first step, to see what improvements are most efficient.

Patel said the city also needs to prioritize studying drainage and impacts of new development in the area before new homes or businesses are actually built.

Flooding has been an issue in parts of the ward for years, and the city has built retention ponds, with a new drainage pond being developed at the Brandon Municipal Cemetery.

“I think a lot of people would agree it’s better to spend $10 million today (than if it would) come back to the city to spend $50 million after 10 years. So that’s something for any new construction or new project coming up,” Patel said.

He said he supports more development in the ward, and that some type of medical facility would be a positive addition, though a medical “tourism” facility in the downtown would be even better. That would be a facility, he said, that people would come specifically to Brandon for, and if it was downtown, it could bring people into the area as a way to revitalize the neighbourhood.

While it might take a lot of work, Patel also wants the city to advocate for a municipal version of Ottawa’s Major Projects Office, where some initiatives can be fast-tracked.

“If you even try to change a bylaw, it will take one and a half or two years,” he said, basing it on what he has been told by current council members. “Why can’t we have something which is prioritized? This (system) has been there for 50 years, 100 years. Maybe it’s time to change.”

On the topic of the Highway 110 and Richmond Avenue East intersection improvements in the ward, Patel said he would like to see more monitoring and tickets so the intersection can be safer.

The province activated traffic lights at the intersection earlier this fall. The intersection was the scene of a fatal crash in May, when a truck driver allegedly drove through a stop sign and hit the vehicle of 49-year-old Xiaoyun Zhang.

Tame said he is happy that the traffic lights have been turned on and rumble strips were created near the intersection. He suggested more signage could be added to reinforce to drivers that it is an important intersection, though he added that doesn’t always solve the issue, based on how many drivers have plowed into the Kemnay overpass.

Tame, who was first elected to council in 2022 with 51 per cent of the vote in a four-person race, said he thinks his first term as a councillor has gone well. He highlighted his responsiveness as a key reason why he should be re-elected.

“The thing I’m most proud of in my work for all residents of the city of Brandon is my willingness to make really tough decisions and to really take a stance, and most of that has been focused around fiscal responsibility,” Tame said.

He said approving low tax increases for budgets would have been an easier solution if he wanted to be re-elected, but that he instead chose what is better for Brandon.

“Vote me out if you want lean, really tight tax increases — I am not your guy, and I’m not scared to say it. Because I know what I’m doing is right.”

Other priorities for Tame include reviewing the province’s e-scooter legislation in the future to see it fits for the city and creating a bicycle pump track as another form of recreation.

Patel’s other priorities include lowering the number of wards from 10 to eight and improving specific crosswalks.

Patel is married to Ward 8 candidate Dhara Patel. He said while they could both be elected, they would still be two separate votes on council, as opposed to their household voting together.

Election day is Oct. 28, and the final advance voting is today from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at city hall, located at 410 Ninth St.

» alambert@brandonsun.com