News related to the strategic plan for the City of Portage la Prairie includes, what Councillor Preston Meier works with, Infill Development Rebate initiative. The Chair of City Planning and Economic Development says the budget that was just recently passed, put forward by finance chair Joe Masi, to work with developers to build great neighbourhoods and improve quality of life so the community can substantially grow.

"There is a door charge for development in the city of Portage," says Meier. "That's not changing. But this is a rebate initiative for anybody that wants to do any kind of an infill, or something that's on unused land. You certainly have to have existing infrastructure surrounding it, and if they do it within a certain time period, they will get a rebate back those development fees. In some cases, they can be significant. Council has lots of tools that they can use and this is one that we felt that not only fit within our strategic plan, but is really a great initiative to help our developers develop some of our infill housing."

Meier explains anything that can be done to promote and build Portage, specifically in the housing area, is much needed. He notes this is one of those commitments to fulfil that need.