View From the Legislature

With 2022 fast approaching it is time to look ahead at what the year is expected to bring in the Steinbach Constituency. In many ways, the year will see the beginning and completion of projects that are both transformational for the region and long advocated for by local residents.

It is expected that in spring the new expanded Rest Haven personal care home will open with 143 brand new suites. This is a project that has been advocated for in the community for decades. I was pleased as the health minister several years ago to announce that the province was supporting this expansion and then to participate in the construction ground breaking ceremony in the fall of 2019. While construction has been delayed during the pandemic, the nearly $38 million project is nearing completion and will add additional PCH capacity to Steinbach for the first time in years.

More than simply capacity, the new facility will be state of the art and will feature a small house living model that helps residents live in a community type of setting even within a very large facility. For too many years, long-time residents of the region have not been able to find a PCH bed closer to their traditional home. The expanded PCH at Rest Haven will go a very long way in addressing these concerns. I look forward to participating in the opening of the facility in 2022 and celebrating its completion with the community and all those who have worked so hard to make this happen.

And while the PCH is coming to completion, another long-awaited project is set to begin in 2022. For many years, the City of Steinbach has been looking to build a regional events centre. As the third largest city in the province, Steinbach has needed a place to hold larger events. There have been many different ideas and concepts, but it has been difficult to get all the partners to unify behind one vision. That changed this year and I was honoured to announce in the summer that the province was supporting, together with the federal government, a new $40 million event centre in Steinbach.

Since then, consultation and design work has been underway. The long-awaited events centre will bring new opportunities to the City of Steinbach and the region. Through long-term vision and partnership between government and the private sector this project is finally ready to begin. I look forward to the ground breaking ceremony for the events centre expected to take place this summer.

There are many other projects that are underway or set to begin in the region. These include additions to the Bethesda Hospital and road infrastructure projects. In all, 2022 is set to be a transformational year for the region as growth and progress continue throughout the southeast.