The RM of Rockwood posted a message on its website regarding its stance on the Winnipeg Metro Region’s Plan 20-50, which is a regional growth plan.
“The R.M. of Rockwood supports the concept of a Regional Plan, however, the R.M. of Rockwood does not support this Regional Plan as it is currently written,” states the online message.
“There are many areas of concern as to how the Regional Plan document was written, as there were no interviews with the R.M. of Rockwood to discuss our current infrastructure, community plans or future visions. Due to the lack of interviews, the R.M. of Rockwood is concerned about how the information was obtained for this Plan, and how the projections were made based from the information obtained.”
The message states that Plan 20-50 needs to take a step back, have a proper consultation process and not rely on the opinions of outside consultants.
“The R.M. of Rockwood is also concerned about the forced membership of the Winnipeg Metropolitan Region (WMR), with no exit clause,” the message states.
“This is a forced inclusion by the Province of Manitoba.”
To view the RM of Rockwood’s standpoint message, visit www.rockwood.ca. To learn more about Plan 20-50, visit the Winnipeg Metro Region website at www.winnipegmetroregion.ca, email info@wmregion.ca or call 204-989-2048.
In other council news:
– Rockwood council adopted a borrowing bylaw for an age-in-place facility in the RM of Rockwood. Council budgeted to borrow $3 million from the aggregate reserve fund to build the facility in Stony Mountain.
The age-in-place facility is part of a larger plan by Kenaston Development and Skylark Developments to develop 413 acres on the outskirts of Stony Mountain.
The development will likely include a blend of single-family and multi-family lots, as well as commercial, highway commercial, industrial and a business park.
According to the preliminary designs, the business park could span about 99 acres, the commercial centre would be about 53 acres and the residential area would be about 261 acres.
– Stony Mountain was under a boil water advisory due to a water main break, which has been resolved.
– The Long Walk was recently filming in Rockwood, resulting in road closures in the municipality. This film is an adaptation of a dystopian novel by Stephen King about contestants of a gruelling annual walking contest. It starts with a group of 100 teenage boys and the winner is the last one standing. Other filming locales include the Town of Stonewall, Birds Hill Provincial Park and around St. Lazare and La Riviere.
– Rockwood council authorized Canada Post to install community mailboxes as needed in the townsite of Balmoral due to the closure of the current post office in the Balmoral general store. Residents with postal boxes in the store will be impacted. Canada Post will determine the location for the community mailboxes.
– Multiple people shared their opposition to a proposed subdivision that would result in three residential lots and a small public road opening. The land is located in a rural residential area between Stonewall and Stony Mountain. The proposed public road opening would have involved a transfer of 0.02 acres of private land to the public road Winfield Way. Council defeated the request.
– Council conditionally approved a permit for Delta 9 to sell cannabis at a mobile cannabis store at the Real Love Summerfest, which took place on July 26 and 27 at a rural retreat and events centre on Road 3E.
– Heidelberg Materials approached council with a request to reroute the Rockwood Rail Trail with an alternate path between roads 78N and 79N to be able to mine through the rail line. The municipality plans to enter into a lease agreement with the company for that portion of the Rockwood Rail Trail. The municipality bought the CP Rail Line in 2016.
– Council defeated a resolution to authorize one team to participate in the 5th Annual Community Golf Tournament hosted by the Stonewall-Headingley RCMP on Aug. 9 at the Teulon Golf and Country Club.
– The RM of Rockwood is entering into a lease agreement with the Town of Stonewall for a new proposed building for the Stonewall and Area Mobility Services.
– Council approved a request from the owners of a Dufferin Drive property to amend the building design for their project. They had previously applied for and received conditional approval to build another six units onto an existing four-unit complex.
– Rockwood council considered a conditional use request to classify an existing single-family home as a detached secondary suite in order to build a new main dwelling on the same lot.
The 79.23-acre property is located at Provincial Road 229 and Road 11E, just south of the boundary between the rural municipalities of Rockwood and Armstrong. The proposed 4,892-square-foot main dwelling would be on the east side of the property, about 1,353 feet southeast of the proposed 1,350 secondary suite, which is a ready-to-move home that was built last year. It would be difficult to build it closer due to swampy conditions. Family friends would live in each of the abodes.
South Interlake Planning District had no significant concerns with the request, although they recognized the large separation distance between the proposed secondary suite and main dwelling.
The same applicant also requested an increase to the maximum floor area requirement for detached ground-level secondary suites to 1,365 square feet from the 1,000-square-feet maximum. Council approved the request.
– A Rockwood couple requested permission to place a 1,736-square-foot temporary mobile home on a property on Road 7E for their daughter and her children.
The main reason is because they are aging and need more help due to health issues. At the same time, their widowed daughter has three children with special needs who need consistent care and homeschooling, and the grandparents would be able to help out.
South Interlake Planning District had no significant concerns, and council approved the request.
– Council heard a request from a resident hoping to vary the minimum site area for a proposed subdivision residual lot to 35 acres from the minimum 80 acres. South Interlake Planning District had no significant concerns, and council approved the request.
– The Sept. 11 Rockwood council meeting has been changed to Sept. 18.
– Check out the Rockwood Rural Municipality Facebook page to see videos from a community project that show residents’ favourite parts about living in their communities. Featured communities include Stony Mountain, Grosse Isle.
