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This article was published 8/2/2017 (1316 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

More municipalities in the capital region continue to grow at a faster rate than Winnipeg and continue to encroach on the city’s borders, but Mayor Brian Bowman said he’s not eyeing amalgamation or altering boundaries to eliminate planning conflicts.

Bowman preferred to focus on the positive side of the most recent census data, which showed that between 2011 and 2016, Winnipeg’s population grew by 6.27 per cent, above the provincial average of 5.8 per cent.

The census found five rural municipalities surrounding Winnipeg grew at a faster rate: Ritchot, 21.9 per cent; Macdonald, 14 per cent; Headingley, 11.3 per cent; Springfield, nine per cent; and West St. Paul, 8.8 per cent.

According to the 2016 Canada Census released Wednesday, the capital region not including Winnipeg grew by 8,227 people. It grew by 8,007 between 2006 and 2011.

Bowman acknowledged some of the growth in the RMs is causing planning conflicts with city hall, citing the dispute with East St. Paul over a planned big-box mall adjacent to the North Kildonan ward, but said the city’s approach is to co-operate.

"We’re trying to find ways where there are opportunities for Winnipeg and neighbouring municipalities to support each other," Bowman told reporters Wednesday following the executive policy committee meeting.

He said redrawing Winnipeg’s boundaries to capture those portions of the RMs that are pushing the borders is not on his agenda.

"It’s not something I’ve considered or looked at in any way, shape or form," he said.

Bowman said he’s not concerned about the RMs outpacing Winnipeg, adding their growth is an endorsement of council’s recent decision to impose fees on new suburban development, adding the rural communities experiencing the strongest growth have their own versions of the city’s new impact fee.

Those RMs have determined imposing impact fees has not stopped development and that the fees are necessary to pay for the costs associated with the new growth, Bowman said.

The strongest growth was south of Winnipeg.

The RM of Ritchot, where population took a nosedive following the 1997 Flood of the Century, registered a 22 per cent population increase. The increase of 1,201 people raised the population to 6,679.

Mayor Jackie Hunt said dike expansion and a new development plan opened up new property for development in places like Grande Prairie, Ile des Chenes, and Ste. Agathe.

"We were pretty much landlocked in all these communities previously," she said.

Another big growth spurt was in the RM of Tache, including the town of Lorette. Tache showed a 12.5 per cent increase, to 11,568 people. Mayor Robert Rivard said the municipality has just completed a sewage lagoon for Lorette to grow as large as 10,000 people.

Springfield continues to be the largest capital region municipality with 15,342 residents. Niverville is also considered part of the capital region now and it grew by 30 per cent to 4,610.

aldo.santin@freepress.mb.ca

bill.redekop@freepress.mb.ca