The Mayor for Tache says they are now one step closer to developing a park at the longitudinal centre of Canada.

Robert Rivard says for years they have been trying to create a park along the Trans Canada Highway, just east of where it intersects Provincial Road 206, north of Landmark. He says what is being planned today is much more modest than the original dream.

"At first the plan was for a huge development there, and monuments and lots of different memorials and that was going to cost in the millions of dollars," explains Rivard. 

But he says a new group has taken over the Centre of Canada development, and the plan now is to build a park, complete with picnic tables, some signs identifying it as the centre of Canada and then maybe some signs commemorating early explorers that came through Manitoba.

"For now it's just going to be very minimal and as the years go on we will keep increasing what's going to be there," he says.

The municipality has just been approved for a $19,000 grant from the Tourism Development Fund through the Province of Manitoba. They have also received $10,000 from the Community Development Corporation and $2,000 from Bilingual Municipalities. On top of that, Tache has agreed to contribute $10,000 payment-in-kind. The grant through the Tourism Development Fund stipulates the advertising signs and picnic table purchases must happen by spring. 

"By early summer we will have a parking area developed and the picnic tables and amenities in place," he says.

Rivard says the site where the park will be built is today a grain field. The municipality owns 60 acres there. The first phase of the park will occupy five to seven acres that has been set aside as a public reserve.