RM of Springfield opts out from Capital Planning Region

The Rural Municipality of Springfield decided it no longer wants to be a part of the group.

The Rural Municipality of Springfield has become the latest community to withdraw from the Capital Planning Region (CPR).

On Jan. 20, the RM’s council voted 4-1 to withdraw from the corporation, joining several other municipalities that have opted out, such as City of Selkirk and the rural municipalities of West St. Paul and St. Andrews

Formally established in 2023 under the Progressive Conservative government, the CPR brings together the City of Winnipeg and surrounding municipalities with a mandate to promote coordinated, sustainable economic and social development across the region.

Part of the CPR’s mandate includes adopting a regional plan by Jan. 1, 2027, a deadline previously extended by the province.

RM of Springfield Mayor Patrick Therrien was the lone council member who voted against leaving the CPR, adding that he “goes with what the council has decided.”

“We’re all sitting at the table and trying to work out amongst a region how we can better work together…and that’s the whole idea,” said Therrien on Wednesday afternoon.

“Regionalization is very important in my eyes, for the Province of Manitoba, the City of Winnipeg, and the RM of Springfield, which is my main focus.”

Had the RM remained a member of the CPR, Therrien believes it would’ve been easier for the municipality to receive funding for projects.

“There’s money that comes from the federal government and it’s dispersed across the provinces… you’re better to send it out as a macro payment to as many hands as possible, as opposed to micro, with just one RM,” Therrien said.

“This is a matter of working with the RMs to facilitate progress in the province, with the vast majority of the population in the City of Winnipeg.

“We’re going to be getting our money, but it’s better to be at the table to see what’s going on.”

Meanwhile, RM of Springfield Councillor Glen Fuhl, who put forward the motion, said he “had concerns about the current regional plan due to the insufficient information and tight deadlines.”

“I’m fully in favour of a regional plan... What I’m against is the plan itself at this time which seems to have little to no information,” he said in a statement to CTV News.

Councillor Mark Miller, who also supported the motion, said the CPR and the original regional plan lacked “comprehensive stakeholder participation,” including from residents that would be most impacted by the vision.

“Residents in Springfield were strongly opposed to (Winnipeg) having a veto power over regional planning and matters of local concern,” Miller said.

“I would encourage regional collaboration to continue with a new format that would include more than just politicians and developers at the table.”

In August 2024, the province announced it would introduce legislation to allow communities to opt out of being part of the CPR.

Therrien added that despite the recent opt-out motion, council still has the chance to rejoin CPR following the RM’s election in October.