Nearly half of municipalities cut ties with the Capital Planning Region

Another Manitoba RM is in the process of opting out of the capital planning region.

The Rural Municipality of Taché is the latest community to withdraw from the Capital Planning Region (CPR), bringing the number of municipalities that have either formally exited or voted to leave to nearly half of the organization’s original membership.

Mayor Armand Poirier confirmed that the council for the RM of Taché voted unanimously on Jan. 27 to leave the CPR, also known as the Winnipeg Metropolitan Region (WMR). The decision comes one week after the RM of Springfield also voted to opt out.

The CPR was formally established in 2023 under the Progressive Conservative government to unite the City of Winnipeg and surrounding municipalities in an effort to foster coordinated, sustainable economic and social development across the region.

Poirier said the concept of forming a coalition among CPR municipalities is important to the planning process, but noted that the approach being taken “wasn’t satisfactory to most of the municipalities.”

In an interview with CTV News, the mayor said council had several concerns about the CPR—“probably too many to list”—adding that most of them centred on governance.

Poirier said that while some critics argue that member municipalities are “giving up” autonomy by participating in the CPR, he disagrees. The mayor said the organization would allow rural municipalities to collaborate and accomplish goals that would be difficult to achieve independently.

“I’m confident that with time, we will be able to find common ground where we can start working together again to establish a plan that’s going to accommodate everyone,” he said.

A report attached to the RM’s Jan. 27 meeting minutes indicates that the council had received a petition with 667 signatures in opposition of the CPR, along with “numerous emails, phone calls, and online requests” calling for withdrawal.

A spokesperson with the corporation told CTV News that eight of the 18 member municipalities—nearly 45 percent—have either formally left or have started the process of opting out from the CPR.

The province announced in August 2024 it would introduce legislation to allow communities to opt out.

Selkirk, Dunnottar, and the RMs of St. Andrews and West St. Paul have formally left the corporation. The RMs of Macdonald, Rockwood, Springfield and Taché have all initiated the process of opting out, according to the spokesperson.

Those seeking to leave the CPR must first pass a resolution by council, with a withdrawal request then sent to Municipal and Northern Relations Minister Glen Simard.

Municipalities that have severed ties with the CPR have previously voiced concerns over a loss of local autonomy, lack of information and no clear benefits.

The CPR is mandated to submit a regional plan by Jan. 1, 2027, a deadline that was extended by the province following legislation introduced by the NDP government.

Plan 20-50 was previously tabled to coordinate regional planning, but it was unanimously voted down in December 2024.