View From the Legislature

As we look ahead to a new year, it’s hard for me not to think that it will feel very familiar to past years in terms of the challenges that are faced in this region. For some time now, growth has been the norm in the southeast and with that comes the considerable strain that is placed on public services and facilities. There is no reason to think that will change in 2012.

One of the most pressing concerns is in the area of healthcare. Local residents know the space constraints that currently exist at the Bethesda Regional Healthcare Centre and those have only been exasperated by the delays for facilities like the long ago promised new emergency room.  There is also a need to upgrade the surgical rooms at Bethesda.

These changes and the addition of other facilities  not only help in the provision of better care, but improved facilities and a larger scope of practice would also help to attract more doctors to the area. One of the greatest needs is for the addition of more long-term care beds in the region. The number of seniors who have to be on long wait lists to get into a care facility or to get into one close to home is unacceptable. It is critical that the provincial NDP government make this an immediate priority.

Of course, growth also puts pressure on our schools. The addition of the new middle school and the high school in Steinbach will be very welcomed but only go part way in addressing the needs of the growth in the Hanover School Division. Additional resources will be needed in this area as well.

Growing communities also have increased demand for recreation facilities and the Steinbach region is no different. These facilities are important to providing a high quality of life as well as being important to a healthy lifestyle. New and improved recreation facilities will be a priority in the months and years ahead.

Of course growth also results in more vehicle traffic. Many of the provincial roads in the area simply were not designed and built for the volume and the type of vehicle traffic we experience. The pressures on our roads will only increase as traffic volumes increase.

In many ways the New Year ushers in familiar challenges. The challenges of growth are better than the challenges that come with stagnant communities but they still need to be met. Over the coming year and beyond it will take both a concerted and a collective effort to make it clear to the provincial government that challenges of growth must be addressed. I look forward to working together with local residents to do just that.