Hanover reeve hopeful looks to address crime, addictions

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This article was published 02/10/2022 (1007 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A Mitchell resident running for reeve in the RM of Hanover says he doesn’t want to be a political leader, but a friend.

Donald Bouchard hopes his work as a street minister and working with kids will eclipse his lack of political experience and address root causes to problems he says residents in the municipality are facing.

The Montreal expat moved to the Southeast 12 years ago, settling in Kleefeld before moving to Mitchell where he owns and operates a flood and fire restoration business. He is running against lone rival and RM of Hanover councillor Jim Funk.

Bouchard said residents tell him street racing, drugs and theft are an increasing problem in the community.

“We’ve lost quite a bit of control over this,” he said.

“My biggest priority is for people to feel safe in their community.”

Spending time in Winnipeg connecting with homeless and vulnerable populations Bouchard said he wants to work with the City of Steinbach to regionalize addictions treatment and detox centres. For street racing, he pointed to communities like Gimli which transformed a defunct air strip into a racetrack.

“We can’t charge and penalize kids just because they race, why not accommodate them?” he said.

The candidate also hopes voters look toward his future, not his past, but welcomes criticism.

Bouchard has been a public presence at anti-mandate rallies in the province, attending gatherings at The Forks, the Manitoba Legislative building and, most recently, an occupation of Centre of Canada Park in the RM of Tache. Bouchard said he saw the gatherings as opportunities to “heal division” between those in favor of COVID-19 mandates and those against.

Saying he can’t “explain himself to everyone” he took no side on the matter of vaccinations or COVID-19 measures when speaking with The Carillon, despite admitting he meets with figures in the anti-vax crowd who are also running to hold office like RM of La Broquerie Reeve Lewis Weiss who called COVID-19 vaccines “poison”, Winkler mayoral hopeful Karl Krebs who bid and failed to make the city a sanctuary immune from pandemic restrictions and Pembina Trails School Division trustee candidate Todd McDougall who has been convicted and fined for violating public health orders.

“I don’t make a difference of people. People that are people, they have a right to choose, who am I to judge them?” he said. Bouchard performed baptisms at the week-long gathering at Centre of Canada Park in August.

Library access, cell phone reception in rural communities and access recreation are on the candidate’s wishlist, too.

“I’m only here to be the voice of the community, what is it and what’s doable?” he said.

As a flood and fire restoration business owner, Bouchard said drainage should be addressed in each municipality to help farmer’s fields from flooding regularly and keep homeowners safe from increasing floods. Work on the Manning Canal north of Randolph is one of Bouchard’s priorities, he says.

Maintenance of the Manning Canal was outlined in the Seine Rat Roseau Watershed District’s Seine River Watershed Management Plan in 2010 but little work has been achieved since. In 2016 then-Infrastructure Minister Blaine Pedersen wrote to the RM putting a hold on work, citing the need for major reconstruction, including land acquisition, before the project could move forward.

The candidate said though he has no experience handling municipal budgets he would work with council to address issues brought before him like rising taxes and utility rates.

Bouchard is challenging Jim Funk for the position of reeve vacated by retiring Reeve Stan Toews.

Residents will head to the polls to elect a new reeve Oct. 26.