The RM of Portage la Prairie is primed for economic growth. That was the message put forward by Deputy Reeve Roy Tufford, as he presented the state of the RM address to the Portage la Prairie Chamber of Commerce yesterday. His presentation outlined previous growth, and ongoing work, when it comes to bringing in new businesses, and supporting existing businesses. Tufford notes they're continuing discussions with potential investors, and it's great to see so much interest in the region. He credits the RM's location as part of the reason for that positive trend.

"It's obvious that our region, with access to highway, rail, and potentially air at Southport, we're ticking a lot of boxes for a lot of companies. The more boxes we can tick, the more we're likely to get this investment happening in the Portage region. We're kind of excited, because it sounds like we're ticking a lot of boxes."

Tufford also cites the municipality's mill rate as another reason investors are interested in the area, given the RM has one of the lowest tax rates in the province.

While taxes and location are one potential draw, Tufford notes the RM is also home to versatile agricultural land, with producers who are able to quickly adjust to new market conditions. He cites the introduction of Can-Oat in Portage as just one example of farmers adjusting to changing production needs.

"Before Can-Oat came there were very few oats grown in the Manitoba and this region, now it's a major crop because Can-Oat is here processing huge amounts of oats, and it's now a money-maker."

He notes while Portage Regional Economic Development isn't simply chasing smoke stacks, it's always exciting to see investors showing interest in the Portage area. Tufford says there are some opportunities for business development that continue to be discussed, and hopes to see some of those opportunities come to fruition. With so much interest in the Portage region, the municipality is continuing to work on their industrial parks. Tufford says the Oakville park is already at capacity, so they're now turning their attention to further developing the Poplar Bluff Industrial Park.

"We have a really big park out there. The land was purchased many years ago, before I was on council, but it's never been developed to the extent there's a road system. We know what the lots look like, and we have the subdivisions in place. We're waiting for a plan to come back from the planning district to formalize it. We need to get roads and drainage in place, so that's our focus this year, we put $400,000 of our budget toward that."

Tufford says their goal is continuing to offer what investors are looking for, to grow the local economy into the future.