Province gives funds to expand Virden's airport
The province is providing $1.65 million to upgrade Virden's airport.
The upgrades will allow for greater capacity and capabilities for commercial operators, medical transfer flights and STARS air ambulance.
Municipal and Northern Relations Minister Glen Simard made the announcement at a news conference at Virden Regional Airport on Monday.
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Winnipeg Free Press
03-06-2025
- Winnipeg Free Press
Whether ratings are good or not, Thunder-Pacers could be a series true basketball fans enjoy
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — It's No. 25 Indiana vs. No. 47 Oklahoma City in the NBA Finals. That's not their seeding. That's their media market ranking. To some, that might matter. To others, it probably won't — and probably shouldn't — matter whatsoever. A title matchup that starts Thursday night between the Pacers and Thunder — two young, fun teams that score a ton and are led by marketable stars in reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander for Oklahoma City and Olympic gold medalist Tyrese Haliburton for Indiana — is the type of series that real basketball fans clamor for. It has everything: star power, good coaching, All-Stars on both sides. And it adds to the NBA's recent run of parity. That the good news. Here's the inevitable other side: The ratings, especially at the start of the series, probably aren't going to be good because the home markets are so small. Those who like the NBA won't be dissuaded by that. Those who don't like the NBA will tout it as great failure. 'I think this finals is a great representation with the two teams that are in it,' Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said. 'You know, they're teams that play good, exciting styles of basketball. Players that have great individual stories, teams that have a great story collectively. And we're proud to be a part of that.' People are watching; they just may not be watching on television. The social media tracking site Videocites says NBA content is getting consumed at a 64% higher clip than last season — 32 billion views and counting so far in these playoffs. Gilgeous-Alexander is the most viewed player, Haliburton is No. 3 and playoff clips of those two have about 1.5 billion views between them to this point. That's billion, with a B. And speaking of that, there are 76 billion reasons the NBA won't be bothered by whatever the ratings are over the next couple of weeks. The new media rights deals — an 11-year, $76 billion pact between the NBA and broadcast partners Disney (ABC/ESPN), Peacock (NBC) and Amazon (Prime Video) that kicks in at the start of next season — show that clearly somebody is watching NBA games or consuming NBA content. The days of straight relying on Nielsen ratings seem to be long gone, with more and more people ditching cable for streaming and more and more young fans just watching everything on their phones and often in condensed versions. If the ratings tank for Pacers-Thunder, those deals are still worth $76 billion. The ad buys for these playoffs have long been paid for. So, the numbers for this series are largely irrelevant to the NBA's bottom line. Haliburton was asked Tuesday what fans who watch will see if they tune in to these finals. 'I think (they'll see) two high-level teams that play an elite style of basketball, who share the ball really well, a lot of different people that can chip in,' Haliburton said. 'I think that's the exciting part about this. I don't want to say it's like a passing of the torch because the old heads are still here. They're still playing very, very well. But definitely to see two young teams, two young organizations, fighting to win a championship, I think is a very big deal.' Late in the regular season, as numbers were bouncing back from a slow start to the season, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said the league's ratings were down about 2% from a year ago. 'But in this environment, where particularly when you're largely featured in legacy media and particularly cable, and no question cable subscriptions are going down, that seems like a victory,' Silver said. In short, nobody at the league office is panicking about ratings, especially right now. Whichever team wins will be the seventh different champion in the last seven seasons, and without question the Thunder and Pacers will be featured in more national broadcasts next season than they were this season and their ratings will be higher — as proven by recent finals runs by Milwaukee, Denver and Dallas. Go ahead and expect Indy and OKC in the Christmas Day package next season as well; neither team was among the 10 picked for that this season, which was probably a mild disappointment for the Pacers and was a huge disappointment for the Thunder. 'I'd love to play on Christmas Day,' Gilgeous-Alexander said earlier this season. 'And I think we're that caliber of team. The NBA makes their decisions. Can't slight them for it. Ball's in our court to prove to them why we deserve to be in that game.' It can easily be argued that both teams did it right: didn't overspend, didn't go into the luxury tax — it's the first finals between two non-taxpayer teams in about two decades — and tried to build around young stars. And the Thunder and Pacers were teams that combined to win 49 games just three seasons ago; their success now has to be a reason for hope for teams like Utah, Washington, Portland, Charlotte and others that have been sputtering. Turnarounds can happen, and they can be rewarded. Some people will watch, some won't, but true fans probably are expecting a pretty good series. 'I think that's exciting,' Haliburton said, 'for any basketball fan.' ___ AP Sports Writer Michael Marot in Indianapolis contributed to this report. ___ On Basketball analyzes the biggest topics in the NBA during the season. More AP NBA:
CTV News
26-05-2025
- CTV News
Manitoba puts $1.65M into southwestern airport
Municipal and Northern Relations Minister Glen Simard (left) is joined by officials at the Virden Regional Airport on May 26, 2025. (Manitoba Government/YouTube) The province is putting $1.65 million into an ongoing project to improve the airport in Virden. Municipal and Northern Relations Minister Glen Simard was in the southwestern town on Monday to make the announcement. 'This is an important investment that will encourage regional development and job creation in Westman,' the minister said in a statement. The provincial dollars will go towards the expansion and rehabilitation of the Virden Regional Airport. The province said the funding will go towards a new automated weather observing system and improved support for medical transfer flights for services like STARS Air Ambulance. 'This is very important for our area,' Virden Mayor Tina Williams said, adding her town is becoming a health-care hub for the southwestern part of the province. Along with the health-care improvements, Williams said the new funding will help bolster tourism and business opportunities tied to the airport. The airport was built in 1940 as a flying school to train pilots during the Second World War. 'Since the RAF decommissioning in 1944, the airport has been kept active through the efforts of many area residents, private aviators, and especially the Virden Flying Club,' said Coun. Bruce Dunning, chair of the Virden Airport Commission. Dunning said the overall project was launched last year as the airport had become outdated over the decades. He said the ongoing project has seen the extension of the runway, installation of the weather observation system, and runway lighting. 'Once again our airport has become the centre for aviation activity in southwestern Manitoba,' he said. Dunning noted along with the provincial funding, the project has seen support from rural municipalities of Wallace-Woodworth and Pipestone, the Town of Virden, and the Virden Area Flying Club.
Global News
26-05-2025
- Global News
Province funds expansion, updates to regional airport in Virden, Man.
The Manitoba government says it's putting money toward rehabbing and expanding a small airport in southwest Manitoba. Municipal and Northern Relations Minister Glen Simard announced Monday that $1.65 million is going toward the Virden Regional Airport, which will allow the community to accept commercial and medical flights like the STARS Air Ambulance. 'This is an important investment that will encourage regional development and job creation in Westman,' Simard said in a statement. 'Thanks to the hard work and commitment of the Town of Virden, this grant funding will enhance the airport's capacity, support commercial growth, and strengthen its role as a critical hub for medical access, economic development and regional connectivity.' Story continues below advertisement Town Coun. Bruce Dunning, chair of the Virden Airport Commission, called the funding a 'significant milestone' for the airport. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy The money for the project comes from the Manitoba Growth, Renewal and Opportunities for Municipalities Program. Some of the upgrades include a new Automated Weather Observing System and support for 24-7 medical transfer flights and charter services. 0:24 Minimal travel disruptions expected as Winnipeg airport repairs major runway
