The Decision Makers: Councillor Jason Nadeau (Part 1)

The only councillor who originally hails from outside Manitoba, Nadeau’s formative experiences include 8 years teaching in Northern First Nations Communities, first in Ontario and then later in Manitoba. He only left when he and his wife were expecting their first children and needed to be closer to medical facilities, settling in Neepawa shortly after that.

He hadn’t been considering a run at Council until he had it suggested to him due to his reputation for getting things done and not being afraid to have the tough conversations. The idea grew on him quickly, and he determined he wanted to represent young families on the Council. Nadeau still has school-aged children himself, and young families are the fastest-growing demographic in the area.

He admits to being somewhat impatient, but he’s come to terms with the fact that projects at the town level have layers of red tape and usually can’t happen overnight. As well, the first year or two on Council are generally about finishing the projects that previous councils have started before you can start to put your own stamp on the town.

One thing Nadeau did when running for Council was make an effort to knock on the door of every single resident of the community. It was something he wanted to make an annual event, once elected, but several factors conspired to make it unworkable, not the least of which being the pandemic. He kept notes of every suggestion and comment he received, however, and breaks them out frequently in Council conversations.

“Every resident who spoke with me, their input was in play when a decision was made,” he says, and that is very much a cornerstone of how Nadeau approaches his role.