Souris Glenwood Mayor Duane Davison was first elected to municipal council in October of 2022, and he is now the Chair of the Western Caucus of municipalities. 

That group represents more than 20 municipalities in southwestern Manitoba. 

“We were at the last meet and on an annual basis they decide upon an executive including the chairperson and I was nominated and won by acclamation. So, I’m chairing the group and away we go.” 

Davison feels the Western Caucus is a valuable tool for local civic leaders because it allows them to get together in one place and exchange ideas and talk about challenges and opportunities. “It’s an unbelievable resource and I attended my first Western Caucus meeting three days after being sworn into office and it was an unbelievably positive experience and I’ve been excited about this group ever since.” 

The mayor of Souris Glenwood says it’s great when you can meet with other elected officials and look for ways to make your community a better place to live. 

“Nobody seems to have a problem that someone hasn’t come across before and we all have a lot of common issues like highways, roads, infrastructure and health care.” 

 

“Inflation is a real issue for all members of the Western Caucus because it doesn’t just apply to gas or food prices. Everything we deal with is impacted by it so anything we want to do moving forward we have to do it we our best guess at what it will cost say 12 to 18 months down the road. Aging infrastructure is another common problem with our members,” said Davison. 

He adds councils do as much as they can afford on an annual basis, but he doesn’t think a higher number of projects are being deferred because of rising costs.