The head of the Association of Manitoba Municipalities says there were some encouraging signs in the provincial government's Throne Speech earlier this week. Chris Goertzen, who is also the mayor of Steinbach, says the new government recognizes the need to do something about the infrastructure deficit in the province.

"It's really encouraging first of all to hear that they want to invest $1 billion a year going forward in infrastructure. That will be concentrated on flood mitigation and water retention and the like but there are many other aspects of that that will be really important for us as a city and us as municipalities across Manitoba. We certainly look forward to how that gets rolled out."

Goertzen is also pleased that the province outlined its intention to involve municipalities more in the decision-making process.

"The AMM ran a 'Fair Say, Fair Share' campaign and that's the fair say part. We know what our communities are going through. We know the challenges and so we can help them make those great decisions that will be efficient and will move the economy forward in Manitoba."