The waiting, she noted, might be the hardest part.
"It's like being a teenage girl sitting by the phone waiting for a call to the prom," she said.
The city could support east-west business travel - many local executives currently drive to Winnipeg so they can fly to Calgary or Toronto - as well as the leisure and sun markets, she said.
But having regularly scheduled air service is about more than just convenience, it's fundamental to the quality of life in Brandon according to Sandy Trudel, the city's director of economic development.
"Time is money and for our executives to have the ability to fly where they need to go from our doorstep is a huge piece of the pie that we're trying to secure. It could take Brandon to another level," she said.
WestJet won't make a decision on any potential new routes until later this year, according to company spokesman Robert Palmer.
"We're still six to 12 months away from making any sort of announcement of where we're going to fly with our new aircraft. At this point, nobody is on the list. There is no list. We're looking at everybody who has expressed an interest and that includes upward of 30 communities across Canada and Brandon is, of course, one of them," Palmer said.
Much has changed in Brandon over the last year - much of it related to the weather. The spring flood of 2011, a once-in-350-years event, caused rotating states of emergency and forced the evacuation of 1,700 houses and businesses.
"It was all hands on deck, 24-7, sandbagging and building the dikes higher. This year is a walk in the park," Hirst said.
11 per cent growth
"Housing is expensive, developers are going crazy trying to keep up with demand and we're working with our community partners to push through affordable housing. We're delighted to be growing this fast but it certainly does cause some challenges."
The 2011 census also pegged the city's population at 52,000, an all-time high, representing 11 per cent growth from the previous census. That growth puts it on par with communities such as Calgary and Edmonton.
Anybody who has driven around town lately or tried to get a table in a restaurant knows about the influx of people, but Hirst and Trudel are happy to have outside confirmation of breaking through the psychological 50,000-person barrier.
"It's growth all the time, we're a boom city," Hirst said.
Oil drills
Brandon is also starting to see some serious trickle-down effects from the red-hot oil industry in and around Virden, less than an hour's drive to the west.
For example, drilling company Trican Well Services just set up in Brandon with its 40 employees. Businesses providing secondary services to the sector are demanding space in Brandon's industrial parks, leading Hirst to say the city could be on its way to becoming "Calgary-light."
"We're basically surrounded [by oil]. Lots of exploration is happening on our doorsteps in neighbouring communities. We have post-secondary, training for oilfield workers and we have great services around machining and welding, the nuts and bolts that keep the oilpatch running. We're trying to anticipate the needs so we can have them ready," she said.
If that wasn't enough, the city's downtown is on the rebound, too, with construction of a new police station nearing completion and a new YMCA also being built.
"The Y is going to be a redevelopment [hub] within the downtown. It's an anchor," Trudel said.
The flurry of activity is putting upward pressure on housing prices.
Housing boom
Michael Barrett, president of the Brandon Real Estate Board, said a typical home would fetch about $240,000 today, up 6 per cent from a year ago.
Brandon has two types of houses: older stock built about 40 years ago - many of them are 1,200-square-foot bungalows or 900-square-foot bi-levels - and new properties between 1,200 and 1,500 square feet.
The latter have double- or triple-car garages, ensuite bathrooms and walk-in closets, standard features that were once the exclusive domain of the city's high rollers.
"People have more means today," he said.
Spurring sales is the fact that many of Brandon's immigrants have decided to settle in the community, sponsoring their families - which takes a minimum of six months - and buying homes.
"It still looks like a seller's market. Every time it starts to look more balanced, it goes back to a shortage of inventory, particularly for homes under $220,000," Barrett said.
Challenges
But it's not all days of wine and roses.
Brandon has a $165 million deficit and 20 per cent of its infrastructure is 100 years old. Hirst said she's going to approach the province and the federal government about helping out with the necessary funding.
"We have huge needs driving expansion and yet we still don't have the capacity to repair our infrastructure. We need pipe in the ground, asphalt, sidewalks and lift stations [which keep water and sewage moving over distances]," Hirst said.
The city also has to deal with new federal legislation that comes in July 1, which requires higher English proficiency for immigrants arriving under Manitoba's foreign workers nominee program.
As well as foreign workers, Brandon has a solid reputation hosting major sporting and other events in recent years and it will try to build off that in the future, too. For example, officials are currently working on a bid to host the 2017 Canada Summer Games, a showcase of the country's amateur athletic talent that will take place right around the country's 150th birthday.
Brandon has also managed to lure several events from Regina, including Arabian Nights, which features a couple of thousand Arabian horses valued at $1 million each.
from Western Investor June 2012
