Brandon Minute: Issue 114

Brandon Minute - Your weekly one-minute summary of Brandon politics

📅 This Week In Brandon: 📅

• City Council meets tonight at 7:00 pm, and on the agenda are the second and third readings of a bylaw that would formally authorize digital parking payment across City parking areas. This is the final legislative step - the bylaw received its first reading at a prior meeting. 
  
  
• The Brandon Police Service will launch a body-worn video program tomorrow, June 2nd. Approximately 65 cameras will be deployed to frontline officers in a phased rollout. To support the program, four new positions will be created: three professional staff and one sworn officer focused on digital evidence management. All recordings will be stored in a digital evidence management system and managed under Manitoba's privacy laws and police records retention requirements. The City has not disclosed what the program will cost.
  
  
• Brandon's Richmond Avenue has made CAA Manitoba's annual Worst Roads list for the third consecutive year, finishing fifth in the 2026 campaign. The road drew nominations for potholes, poor maintenance, uneven surfaces, crumbling curbs, and inadequate cycling infrastructure. A fatal crash at the intersection of Highway 110 and Richmond Avenue East has brought additional attention to the street's condition, as traffic lights at that intersection have remained non-functional for months. First Street also made its debut on this year's list. Brandon's 18th Street, which held the title of Manitoba's worst road in 2024, has since improved following dedicated infrastructure investment - an outcome CAA cited as a model for what targeted spending can achieve.
  
  
• The City of Brandon and the John Howard Society of Brandon are pushing the Province to expand Manitoba's Bail Navigator Program from Winnipeg to Brandon and other regional centres. Councillor Bruce Luebke introduced a resolution at the May 19th Council meeting, which Council approved. The resolution will now be debated at the regional Association of Manitoba Municipalities meeting in Melita next month. If adopted there and at the fall convention, the association would lobby the Province for expansion. The program - currently operating only in Winnipeg through the John Howard Society and the Elizabeth Fry Society - assigns a staff member to help low- and medium-risk accused offenders navigate bail conditions, court dates, and referrals to support services. The Province funds the Winnipeg program at $73,000 per year, which currently serves 10 to 20 participants at a time. Program eligibility excludes repeat offenders, gang members, and those accused of serious offences such as arson, sexual assault, or weapons charges.
  
  
• The City has issued a request for proposals to purchase four electric vehicles - the first EVs in the City's fleet - as part of its broader climate change strategy. The vehicles will replace three 2013 Kia Optima Hybrids and a 2014 Jeep Compass, all approximately 13 years old and primarily used by building inspectors. Two Brandon dealerships submitted bids: Murray Chevrolet at $162,120 and Fowler Hyundai, whose bid was set aside due to what the City called "ambiguity in the information received." Charging stations have already been installed at the A.R. McDiarmid Civic Complex, with four ports accessible only to City staff and capacity for four more ports if the program expands. Mayor Jeff Fawcett described the purchase as a "small step" in the City's climate plan, acknowledged Brandon is "probably a little late" compared to other municipalities, and said rising fuel costs make the economics favourable - though the City has no estimate of projected fuel savings. The selection process is expected to conclude within the next month.

🚨 This Week’s Action Item: 🚨

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