Community Profile
The Town of Shoal Lake and the surrounding Rural Municipality of Shoal Lake, which includes the Hamlet of Oakburn, are situated in southwestern Manitoba, Canada, 300 km northwest of the capital city of Winnipeg and 110 km northwest of Brandon. Shoal Lake is located around the north end of Shoal Lake itself. The lake is nine kilometers long, making it ideal for boating and water-skiing as well as fishing.
Brief History
On the famous "March West" of the North West Mounted Police in 1874, some members broke away and traveled north through Fort Ellice to Fort Edmonton. On their return trip along the Fort Ellice Trail, they established posts at Shoal Lake, Minnedosa, and Gladstone. In 1885, the Canadian Pacific Railway was constructed at the north end of the lake rather than the south and the great exodus from the south end of the lake began, with some of the buildings being moved up the lake on the ice. The south end survives to this day as a resort area, popular for boating and water-skiing.
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Quick Community Reference
| Site:
junction of
Highways 16, 21, and 42 Elevation: 625 metres above sea level Longitude: 100 43 W Latitude: 50 29 N Population - Town of Shoal Lake(2001): 801 Population - R.M. of Shoal Lake : 578 (including Oakburn) Population - Hamlet of Oakburn: 200 |
Climate
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Temperature (seasonal averages, Celsius): January: -19.5 degrees April: -3.2 degrees July: 20.1 degrees October: -5.7 degrees |
Economic Profile
| Agribusiness |
| The main industry in the Shoal Lake area is agriculture, which comprises close to one third of the area's economy. Mixed farming is the norm, with many cow-calf operations. The dominant crops are cereals, canola, flax, and more recently peas and lentils. Shoal Lake has become a major centre for agribusiness, boasting five implement dealers, one elevator, three fertilizer and chemical dealers, three seed cleaners, a veterinary clinic, and one processing plant. Agricore United opened a new high throughput grain elevator and fertilizer distribution centre in the spring of 2000. |
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| Retail Trade |
| Shoal Lake has a healthy retail trade sector of over 70 businesses to provide products and services to area residents, with plenty of room for new or existing businesses to expand. |
| Manufacturing & Processing |
| Our industrial park northwest of town along Highway 16 is the ideal location for future expansion in the manufacturing and processing sector. With the strong agricultural base and great access to markets, value added food or industrial processing would be a welcome and viable addition to our community. EXP Feeds Inc. opened in 2004 and uses an extruding process to produce a plant-based protein product for animal feed. |
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Transportation
| Air | ||||||||||||||
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The Shoal Lake Regional Airport was constructed in 1992 and has a
1000 metre paved and lighted runway, 10/28. It is licensed for day
and night operation. Fuel and oil are available, as are aircraft
tiedowns with electricity.
Rides to and from the airport are available from the following community members:
The closest commercial passenger air service is at Brandon. |
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| Rail | ||||||||||||||
| Freight and grain are transferred through Shoal Lake on a Canadian Pacific Railways main line. | ||||||||||||||
| Ground | ||||||||||||||
| Shoal Lake has an average annual daily traffic flow of 2500 vehicles on Highway #16 alone, plus 1200 on Highway #21, and 510 on Highway #42. These numbers steadily increase each time the Department of Highways records statistics. Greyhound provides bus service out of Shoal Lake and Grey Goose runs out of Oakburn. Purolator Courier picks up and delivers to Shoal Lake twice a day. Various transfer and custom trucking outfits operate out of the area, offering pick-up and delivery of a wide range of commodities. The community owns a Handi-Van, a 12-passenger handicap accessible van which can be rented by individuals or community groups. |
Municipal Services
The Town of Shoal Lake is governed by the Mayor and four
councillors who are all elected at large and serve a four-year term. The Rural
Municipality of Shoal Lake is governed by the Reeve and six councillors who are
elected on a Ward system and serve a four-year term. Both the Town and the R.M.
employ a Chief Administrative Officer, an assistant, and other staff.
The Town and R.M. of Shoal Lake have recently entered into an agreement with
Brandon for the provision of 911 Emergency Services. Shoal Lake also has a local
Emergency Measures Plan.
| Police |
| Detachments at Shoal Lake, Minnedosa, Hamiota, Elphinstone, and Wasagaming and one highway patrol have recently been amalgamated into the Yellowhead Detachment based out of Shoal Lake. A Staff Sergeant will be taking over command of the detachment later this year. The detachment includes 20 officers, 15 cruisers, four administrative staff, two snowmobiles, and one boat. |
| Fire |
| The Shoal Lake area has two volunteer fire departments. The Town of Shoal Lake has 19 firefighters, 2 pumpers, 1 tanker, 1 rescue unit, 1 quick response/grass fire truck, 1 Zodiak, 1 snowmobile with rescue sled, and the Jaws of Life. Oakburn has six firefighters and an additional pumper. As well, Shoal Lake has entered into a mutual aid agreement with surrounding communities whereby Strathclair and Birtle would assist at any fire in Shoal Lake at the fire department’s request and their neighbouring communities would cover their areas while absent. A new firehall opened in 2003. |
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| Ambulance |
| Shoal Lake has 24-hour a day ambulance service with two units which are operated by the Assiniboine Regional Health Authority based out of Souris and Shoal Lake. |
| Zoning and Planning |
| The Town and R.M. of Shoal Lake have entered into a Planning District which oversees zoning, planning, and development issues. |
| Building Codes |
| All new buildings and additions must adhere to provincial standards. |
| Streets Paved |
| 90% of streets in the Town of Shoal Lake are paved. As well, the downtown area recently renovated the curbs and sidewalks. The North Shore project at the north end of the lake contains numerous paved walking paths. Downtown Oakburn has paved streets with the remainder well maintained gravel. |
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