{"id":62077,"date":"2026-02-02T14:30:17","date_gmt":"2026-02-02T18:30:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thelaker.ca\/?p=62077"},"modified":"2026-02-02T14:30:17","modified_gmt":"2026-02-02T18:30:17","slug":"year-in-review-wong-reflects-on-2025-progress-eyes-infrastructure-and-growth-in-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/staging-z.thelaker.ca\/?p=62077","title":{"rendered":"Year in Review: Wong reflects on 2025 progress, eyes infrastructure and growth in 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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FALL RIVER:<\/strong> The MLA for Waverley\u2013Fall River\u2013Beaver Bank said the past year delivered meaningful progress for the community, while 2026 will need to focus on infrastructure, housing, and supports for a growing population.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Brian Wong said one of the biggest highlights for him was the opening of the Aerotech Connector, a project years in the making that he says has already eased traffic pressures in the area.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s actually helped relieve a lot of the stress through traffic in the community,\u201d Wong said, noting the project faced delays and budget challenges along the way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He credited former MLA Bill Horne for getting the project started and said the finished connector has \u201creally changed things for the community.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Another major milestone in 2025 was the opening of the Lockview athletic Turf field, which Wong described as a game-changer for residents of all ages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cEverybody\u2019s kids go through the school system, everybody\u2019s kids are involved in recreation, seniors can walk around the track, and we can host football and rugby games at home,\u201d Wong said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s an amazing addition, and it only happened because of years of work by dedicated volunteers.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Support for community organizations and volunteers continues to be a priority for Wong, who called them \u201cthe engine\u201d that keeps communities across Nova Scotia running.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He pointed to groups that serves residents from childhood through their senior years, promoting health and activity while continuing to grow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Housing and seniors\u2019 care were also top of mind in 2025, with Wong welcoming the opening of the new long-term care facility near Fall River, which will provide 144 beds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThat\u2019s a big addition to the community,\u201d he said. \u201cWe need places for our seniors to go, and this helps address that need.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Despite progress, Wong acknowledged residents continue to raise concerns around traffic, water reliability, and transit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Traffic congestion, particularly at peak times near the end of Fall River Road, remains an issue, even with improvements tied to Highway 118.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wong also said water issues in parts of Fall River Village and St. Andrews West are unacceptable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe need innovative and creative ways to get reliable water sources to these communities,\u201d he said, adding that residents in the area pay high taxes and deserve better infrastructure in return.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Transit is another growing concern as the population ages and more students and young people need reliable transportation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf you don\u2019t have a car, it just doesn\u2019t make sense right now,\u201d Wong said. \u201cBus service into Fall River is essential.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Looking ahead to 2026, Wong said his priorities include continued support for volunteer groups, pushing forward work on the Beaver Bank Connector, and advocating for more child-care spaces to meet demand from a growing population.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPopulation growth is real here, and child care has to keep pace,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As the provincial legislature prepares to reconvene, Wong expects budget discussions and deficit concerns to dominate debate. He acknowledged the province is projecting a significant deficit but said investments were made where they matter most.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThat money went into health care, housing, education, and programs like school lunches,\u201d Wong said. \u201cIt wasn\u2019t wasted \u2014 it was invested in improving systems.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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While tough fiscal decisions lie ahead, Wong said Nova Scotia\u2019s long-term potential gives him optimism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe have enormous potential in offshore wind, natural resources, and development,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThat\u2019s how we build toward a stronger future.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After serving time in cabinet, Wong said he\u2019s found renewed satisfaction in focusing fully on constituency work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI enjoy going into the community, seeing issues firsthand, and working directly with people,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThat\u2019s the part of the job I really value.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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FALL RIVER: The MLA for Waverley\u2013Fall River\u2013Beaver Bank said the past year delivered meaningful progress for the community, while 2026 will need to focus on infrastructure, housing, and supports for a growing population. Brian Wong said one of the biggest highlights for him was the opening of the Aerotech Connector, a project years in the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":58445,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12,957],"tags":[212,3935,10,4709,2245,10234,2,2517,16,1760],"class_list":["post-62077","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured","category-news","tag-aerotech-connector","tag-affordability","tag-beaver-bank","tag-beaver-bank-connector","tag-brian-wong","tag-cost-of-living-2","tag-fall-river","tag-premier-tim-houston","tag-waverley","tag-windgate-drive"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging-z.thelaker.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/62077","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging-z.thelaker.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging-z.thelaker.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging-z.thelaker.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging-z.thelaker.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=62077"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/staging-z.thelaker.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/62077\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging-z.thelaker.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/58445"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging-z.thelaker.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=62077"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging-z.thelaker.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=62077"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging-z.thelaker.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=62077"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}