Brandon Minute: Issue 93

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

📅 This Week In Brandon: 📅

• Happy New Year! As 2026 gets underway, Common Sense Brandon is ready to make this the year that common sense takes center stage in our city. Your support and engagement make it possible for us to push for smarter decisions, lower taxes, and greater accountability at City Hall. This year, we’ll continue speaking up for practical solutions that benefit all residents and ensure our city’s leaders are focused on the priorities that matter most. Wishing you and your family a happy, healthy, and successful year ahead
  
  
• The Keystone Centre in Brandon has lowered prices on nearly all concession items and introduced a “pre-game” discount to make events more affordable. Items like meal combos, beverages, and popcorn saw reductions of $1-$2, with a box of popcorn dropping from $6 to $4. Additionally, select beers at Wheat Kings games will be $5 during the hour before puck drop, down from $8.25. The changes were coordinated with the in-house food provider, Sodexo Live, and aim to improve the fan experience while keeping entertainment accessible. The Centre also announced a special $10 ticket price for the January 7th Wheat Kings game for all ages.
  
  
• Plans for a long-discussed sobering centre in Brandon remain stalled, even as a new provincial law expands police authority to detain highly intoxicated individuals for up to 72 hours. Brandon police and City officials say the gap between policy and available infrastructure is becoming increasingly evident as substance-related calls rise. Without a dedicated protective care facility, officers must continue using holding cells and releasing individuals after 24 hours, sometimes before they are fully sober. The centre, first proposed in 2021 with $2 million in provincial funding, was intended as a health-focused alternative to detention. However, construction costs are now estimated closer to $6 million, leaving the project in limbo at the design stage. The City is exploring phased construction and partnerships, including a site adjacent to John Howard Society housing.
  
  
• City Council has approved the permanent partial closure of the eastern half of the 1000 block of McTavish Avenue to improve access to the Brandon Police Service headquarters. The closure, originally implemented in September 2022 during construction of the BPS detention facility, will create 32 new parking spaces and provide more room for vehicles transferring detainees, easing congestion in the full parking lot. The western half of the block will remain open to the public and allow access to the back lane. Council says that the closure also improves traffic flow onto 10th Street, and the partial approach balances operational needs with City services. Costs for curb repairs, fencing with automated gates, and lighting will be partially covered by leftover funds from the detention-unit project.
  
  
• The City is considering a 12-week pilot project to expand its organic waste program to residents in multi-unit homes and apartments, who currently lack green-bin service. The project would provide 120 homes with electric food recyclers that dry and grind food scraps into a soil-like product for use in houseplants or community gardens. Participants would track their food waste and complete surveys, potentially paying a small fee, and would keep the recycler after the program. The initiative is expected to cost the City about $50,000, with potential funding offsets being explored. City officials suggest that removing food waste from garbage could cut black-bin volume by up to 50%, reduce methane emissions, and lower disposal costs for building owners. Results of the pilot would inform a possible full-scale program. Councillors highlighted the program’s potential for long-term landfill reductions and year-round composting opportunities.

🚨 This Week’s Action Item: 🚨

🪙 This Week’s Sponsor: 🪙

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