Martin Harder delivered his 13th State of the City address on Thursday, highlighting Winkler's strong financial position, a renewed focus on measuring community success by quality of life, and the exciting future of recreation.

He notes more than 500 piles have already been driven into the site of the upcoming Meridian Exhibition Centre which will add a second arena (the only sledge hockey friendly arena in Manitoba), a walking path and indoor soccer/conference centre that seats 1,200.

However, Harder took a moment to honour young citizen Jesse Vanden Berg who originally made the case for an indoor soccer facility to council in 2017, even donating his own $20 towards the project. Harder invited Vanden Berg and Meridian ownership group WGI Vice President Curtis Farmer who presented a cheque for $500,000 as part of their $1.25 million commitment to the project, nearly two years to the day from Vanden Berg's presentation to council.

"Jesse's example of bringing in a twenty dollar bill and saying, "this is my contribution to make something happen" ... to me that's what this community is all about," Harder says.

"It felt pretty good seeing it come together," Vanden Berg says, adding youth come together every week during the winter to play soccer at a local gym, and they've dreamed of a proper indoor soccer turf.

Construction on the Meridian Exhibition Centre is expected to finish in approximately 12-14 months.

"All good things take time and it's an exciting time for the community. It will create some awesome opportunities we've never had before... it was worth the wait," Harder says.

Related Article: Ten Year Old Soccer Player Makes Request Of Winkler Mayor (VIDEO) https://pembinavalleyonline.com/local/ten-year-old-soccer-player-makes-request-of-winkler-mayor-video