It was years in the making.
One more set of signatures is required from the Rural Municipality of Dauphin, and it's a done deal. The City and the RM of Dauphin have tentatively struck a deal for funding recreation in the community moving forward. The agreement would see the RM provide $419,000 in recreation funding in 2026.
Contributions in 2027 and 2028 would be on a per capita basis with a cost-of-living cap on any annual increases. The RM will also contribute $50,000 per year for capital requirements over and above its operating contributions.
CKDM NewsNow caught up with Mayor David Bosiak.
"I must commend the RM for making a proposal that is very similar to ones we had discussed early on through many of our two long years of negotiations," said Bosiak. "We came up with a deal that I would say is pretty much confirmed. Both councils were there."
Bosiak says when they met recently, they were leaving the room with a deal or not. The RM has recommended a few adjustments to the governance structure, which the city agreed to, and Bosiak says they signed a resolution on Monday night.
"The City is absolutely ecstatic. All we want is fairness, and we believe this deal is that," continued Bosiak. "We're so happy that the RM wanted to meet and continue discussing. Since our negotiations broke down, the City has been working hard with the DRS to figure out how we were going to operate next year and the two years after with the reduced funding from the RM."
The new agreement will drive recreation in the community and allow DRS staff to rectify issues inside the Parkland Rec Complex. Bosiak says the windows inside the Curlers Lounge are an example of something that needs upgrading, as they're more than 25 years old.
If you've noticed a leaky showerhead in the dressing rooms at the pool or any of the dressing rooms inside Credit Union Place, those could be upgraded, under the new agreement, which David expects to be confirmed in the coming days.
David does say the Rec Complex has always been safe and that it has never been compromised. Anything that needed to get done for safety reasons or up to code was completed.
"A lot of the other things. Like the normal wear and tear, you want to replace the carpets when they're worn out," ended Bosiak. "You want new chairs in the hallway when they're old. Those sorts of things kept getting pushed down the line because DRS wasn't sure about the budget. Those are the things that we hope to address in the next little while."
CKDM NewsNow expects to hear from the Reeve of the RM Ernie Sirski, and we will provide more when that happens.
