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A public hearing in La Broquerie was long and drawn out, primarily due to people wondering why Steinbach City Council has refused access to Hirschfeld Road for a new subdivision behind the Frantz Motor Inn.
As the La Broquerie Council Chamber started to fill up for a public hearing on opening a road in the new development south of Highway 52, it was expected that people would object to opening that road.
In the end, nobody was opposed to opening the road, rather they questioned the reason traffic would access the development directly from Highway 52 instead of Hirschfeld Road.
Municipal councillors and members of the public cited several times that the Hirschfeld access would be safer.
Alan Klippenstein, Director of Real Estate Development with Schinkel Properties, noted that was the initial plan. Since Steinbach has control of that road, city council was asked for permission, which was denied.
The access plan was re-worked and the access roads were connected to Hunter Drive and Deerfoot Trail.
Residents of Eastgate Drive objected to that plan due to the increased traffic that would be forced to drive through their neighbourhood.
The newest plan shows one access road connected to Hunter Drive and the main access road will connect to Eastgate Drive, just south of Highway 52. This will require the current Eastgate access to Highway 52 to be moved west. Manitoba Transportation and Infrastructure is working out those details.
Current plan shows the newly approved road connecting to Hunter Drive on the south and to a public road that will connect with Eastgate Drive, just south of Highway 52. (Supplied by Schinkel Properties)
Klippenstein pointed out that Schinkel Properites is working with school divisions to work out the safest bus stops in this new development which will also accomodate students living along Eastgate Drive. He said the current plan will separate traffic between the two developments.
La Broquerie council had no answers to the many questions on why Steinbach was refusing to work with a neighbouring municipality on a project that would benefit the city as most of the traffic would be going to Steinbach, for work or for shopping.
“It’s not right,” said deputy reeve Ivan Normandeau. “It’s frustrating on our part.”
Reeve Lewis Weiss suggested everyone might want to attend a Steinbach city council meeting to find out why the city refused safer access to this new development.
Councillors also wondered why the city consistently refuses to cooperate with any of La Broquerie’s plans for growth and progress.
“This council does not object to subdivisions that Steinbach does,” said councillor Laurent Tetrault. He expects the increased traffic flow along Highway 52 might be enough to urge the province to extend the twinning of the highway toward La Broquerie.
At the end of the hearing, there was no opposition to the road opening, and the application was approved by La Broquerie council.
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