AT-Network May 2023

at-network@lists.umanitoba.ca

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WFP: Breaking the cycle - bike theft (May6'23)

by Beth McKechnie

BREAKING THE CYCLE Bike theft is far from a uniquely Winnipeg problem, but other Canadian cities are having more success reducing numbers and reuniting owners with their wheels https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/2023/05/05/breaking-the-cycle-4 JEN Sjodin never expected to be sending her 13-year-old son pedalling down a criminal path. But the Winnipeg mom was out of luck when it came to retrieving his $400 bike with the help of city police, so she and her husband took matters into their own hands, and their son Dawson’s legs. He’d saved for months to buy the grey and neon-green Giant Talon last fall. Not long after getting his new wheels, he rode to the Walmart on Taylor Avenue and locked his bike to the rack near the front doors. He was in and out of the store in about 15 minutes, and found his cable lock cut. The bike was gone. Sjodin filed a police report with the Winnipeg Police Service, posted a notice on Facebook and scoured online classified ads in hopes of finding the bike. Six days later, Dawson spotted it on Kijiji. “We called the police non-emergency line and talked with someone after hours,” she says. “They suggested to call back the next day, provide any updates to the police report and the police would check it out.” The next day was going to be too late. Instead, Sjodin, her husband and two brothers concocted a plan to steal the bike back. She messaged the seller and posed as an interested customer. When they met up, Dawson took the bike for a test ride and pedalled directly to his uncle’s house. Dawson got his bike back, but the experience left him shaken. “For my son, it has made him much more afraid to lock up his bike,” Sjodin says. “He doesn’t think it’s safe to lock it up anywhere.” ❏❏❏ The experience is one thousands of Winnipeg cyclists — from young kids to seniors — are all too familiar with, some repeatedly. Police say 1,665 bikes were reported stolen across the city in 2022. The real number, however, is likely many times higher; multiple studies suggest “small” property crimes often go unreported. Many victims won’t bother to involve police because of the time involved and minuscule odds of getting their stuff back. And although the city launched an online bike registry in 2018, it has proven mostly ineffective at reuniting owners and their rides — particularly when compared to measures implemented in other Canadian cities — say cycling advocates, bike-shop owners and even police. About 400 cycles are recovered in Winnipeg annually, but less than 10 per cent of them make their way home. In 2022, 386 bikes were recovered, and 15 were returned to their owners, according to the city’s community services department. In Edmonton, 23 per cent of recovered bikes are returned to their owners. More than 17,000 bikes are registered in the Winnipeg system, which combined existing paper registrations from 1995 with web records. Of that number, more than 7,500 went on the registry between 2018 and 2021. ❏❏❏ Tom Babin, a Calgary author, active-transportation advocate and “cyclist in chief” at online magazine Shifter, says bike theft breaks trust in communities, creates economic difficulties and fuels other crimes. “There isn’t a lot of trust between citizens and police when it comes to bike theft. There’s an assumption everywhere that the cops will do nothing about it, and they’re probably right. The police are busy,” he says. When filing police reports and registering bikes fail to show results, people such as Sjodin may take drastic measures when they see systems not working. “Can you imagine celebrating other crimes for stealing something back? Stealing your bike back might be good at the moment, but for society, it’s a terrible way of approaching it,” Babin says. Police say they understand that people may turn to vigilantism when they feel the police aren’t helping in their time of need. “I don’t blame people for doing that. Of course, we can’t recommend that people take matters into their own hands. But I understand the frustration,” says WPS Sgt. Yvan LeTourneau. Winnipeg cyclists can pay $7.35 and input their bike’s serial number, make, model, year, value and three images to add a bike to the city’s online registry. Any recovered bikes are taken to a city bike-storage facility and cross-referenced with the registry to try finding their rightful owners. A nondescript warehouse in a Winnipeg industrial district houses hundreds of bikes, likely bound for auction or the scrap pile. The city’s 2023 auction of recovered bikes ended Wednesday. Associated Auto Auctions, which conducted the weeklong online sale, had 428 bikes listed, an 11 per cent increase from 2022. All 428 were sold, the proceeds of which go into the city community services department’s coffers. Winnipeg has a single bike-recovery officer who is responsible for the warehouse, recovering reported bikes, communicating with the police, providing promotional materials and returning bikes back to owners. Bike Winnipeg executive director Mark Cohoe says only three per cent of 300 cyclists surveyed found the online registry useful for recovering their property. ❏❏❏ Before he retired last spring, Rob Brunt worked as the Vancouver Police Department’s first-ever bike detective. He says in 2015, about one per cent of the 3,000 stolen bikes reported to the police were getting back to their owners. That year, he reached out to other cities and developed a partnership with Project 529, an online bike registration system. “This system allows anybody to search the stolen database. The cops can use it, the bike stores can use it and the community can use it,” he says. In the first year after Vancouver joined Project 529, police saw a 30 per cent decline in reported bike thefts, along with improvements in recovery efforts. That number is now a staggering 60 per cent, compared to the number of thefts in 2015. It’s free for bike owners to register their rides with Project 529, and the international database is available to anyone, not just law-enforcement agencies. Const. Kenny McKinnon of the Edmonton Police Service wanted to address Edmonton’s bike-theft crisis in a similar way. “For The EPS, bike recovery was abysmal,” he says. “When we worked in the downtown core, frequently we would stop people on bikes, and it was well known that they were known bike thieves. But being able to prove that the bike was stolen was the most difficult thing that we ran into.” McKinnon says it was important to partner with the community. Since 2019, all 18 bike shops in Edmonton offer point-of-sale registration for every sale, free of charge. EPS says more than 100,000 Edmonton bikes are registered through the Bike Index. When the system was first implemented, 1,200 bikes were sent to auction or destroyed annually. In 2021, that number fell to 774. Winnipeg’s online registry was developed by ePly, a company focused on event registration. The city is ePly’s first and only client for bike-registration purposes. LeTourneau has unsuccessfully pitched Project 529 and the Bike Index to the city. “(ePly) was never on our radar as a solution,” he says. “Why are we creating something that’s already been created elsewhere?” ❏❏❏ In April 2019, the community services department launched Bicycle Registry at the Time of Purchase Project, a stakeholder engagement survey. Of the 21 surveyed bike retailers who participated, 15 supported point-of-sale registration. Tim Woodcock, owner of Woodcock Cycle Works, says the city approached him and other shops to register bikes at the point of sale. Through the shop’s own database, Woodcock keeps a record of serial numbers for every sale. “It’s not that much extra work for us. I said to (the city) that I’m on board, and then we never heard anything back,” he says. “I don’t view selling a person a bike because their bike was stolen as a sale. If people get multiple bikes stolen, we lose them as cyclists.” City spokesperson Adam Campbell says the city annually provides shops with promotional materials for registration that can be included in paperwork when someone buys a bike. “During a consultation with stakeholders conducted in 2019, we found that not all bike shops or larger retailers support or have the resources to do a point-of-sale bike registration,” Campbell says. WPS Sgt. Todd Martens says the registration system needs to change. “If the system isn’t working to the best of its capability and you have evidence to prove it, let’s pivot,” he says. fpcity(a)freepress.mb.ca

12 months

WFP Editorial: Walking it back - Portage & Main (May3'23)

by Beth McKechnie

Walking it back https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/opinion/editorials/2023/05/02/walking-it-… PORTAGE and Main has long been considered Winnipeg’s most famous intersection. Infamous may be more appropriate. Since 1979, Portage and Main — the confluence of this city’s two main non-river arteries — has been closed to pedestrians. Crossing at the intersection involves navigating a confusing underground concourse populated by businesses that close at 6 p.m., and is accessed by poorly maintained, poorly lit stairwells. Traversing Portage and Main is an accessibility nightmare for those with disabilities, and a baffling ordeal for tourists and newcomers to the city. The word iconic gets bandied about a lot when describing Portage and Main. What, exactly, is “iconic” about crumbling concrete barricades? The intersection is a reliable source of debate and, once, a go-nowhere plebiscite. And that’s about it. But now, the city is being presented with a rare opportunity to reimagine our most infamous intersection into something that could, perhaps, be worthy of the “iconic” designation. The current barricades need to come down, owing to necessary repairs above and below ground, and the city is soliciting public feedback on potential replacements, including a circular “sky garden” that would allow pedestrians to move across the intersection — suspended six storeys above traffic. Other ideas at street level include lookout towers, lighting poles, canopies, and “monumental public art.” Maybe we should revisit former mayor Susan Thompson’s laser-pyramid-and-hot-tubs idea while we’re at it. Most of these ideas do not involve improved street-level pedestrian access. Making Portage and Main more attractive to residents and visitors alike is a fine goal, but it shouldn’t be the only goal. What if — and hear us out — people could just cross the street? What if Portage and Main was accessible to everyone, every day, in their daily lives? While a balance can certainly be struck between the practical and the beautiful, what we’re talking about, at the end of the day, is an intersection. Perhaps we should improve its function before we talk about its form. The thing that makes cities feel alive is vibrancy at street level, the feeling of being part of a larger, kinetic energy that comes from being around a crush of other people — which is why pedestrian-only corridors and squares in other, larger cities tend to be popular tourist attractions. We can’t erect a concrete fortress around our supposedly iconic intersection and then turn around and wonder why our downtown practically has tumbleweeds rolling across it after 6 p.m. Vibrant city centres need people in them. Not just cars. A pedestrian scramble-style crossing — in which vehicles are stopped in all directions and pedestrians can move any way, including diagonally, to get where they need to go more quickly and efficiently — could be a potential solution for Portage and Main. Arguably the most famous scramble crossing in the world is Shibuya Crossing, which, in addition to being functional, is actually worthy of the designation “iconic.” Many cities have them. Oxford Circus in London features a pedestrian scramble; so does Yonge and Dundas in Toronto. Vancouver is looking at installing them as well. When they are navigated properly, scramble crossings — despite their moniker — are safer for pedestrians, according to City of Winnipeg engineers who started looking at them as part of a road safety strategy back in 2019. Re-erecting the barricades at Portage and Main — even prettier, more Instagrammable versions — only cements our image as a pedestrian- hostile, car-centric city. Sky gardens, discs, towers, orbs… it doesn’t really matter what you call them. A barricade by any other name is still a barricade.

1 year

WFP Analysis: Coun. Browaty? Meet Joe Downtown; he rides a bike, doesn’t like coffee and — surprise! — he’s a Winnipegger, too (May2'23)

by Beth McKechnie

*Coun. Browaty? Meet Joe Downtown; he rides a bike, doesn’t like coffee and — surprise! — he’s a Winnipegger, too* https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/2023/05/01/coun-browaty-meet-joe-do… WINNIPEG, we have a Jeff Browaty problem. In this city’s ongoing efforts to build a better, more progressive and more sustainable city — for those of us here now and future generations — the veteran North Kildonan councillor has emerged as a major impediment. Now, let me say that I respect the fact that Browaty puts his name on a ballot every four years and — if election results are any indication — has done an excellent job of representing his ward. His current position as chair of the finance committee of council proves he has the respect of at least some of his fellow councillors. However, I cannot be alone in squirming any time Browaty ventures out of his suburban enclave to engage on citywide issues. That was certainly my reaction when he almost single-handedly triggered the 2018 plebiscite on reopening Portage and Main. Browaty weighed into an issue that didn’t really affect his constituents, screwed over the people who live and own businesses downtown and then scurried back to the ’burbs. If that were his only crime against progress, it would be tolerable. But he’s at it again, this time at the April 26 meeting of the East Kildonan-Transcona community committee. One of the delegates at that meeting was Marianne Cerilli, founder of the Transportation and Land Use Coalition, an advocacy group that supports progressive and sustainable urban planning. The TLUC is well-informed, well-supported and regularly makes a valuable contribution to discussions on the future of the city. Cerilli told the committee the city’s plan to spend $1 billion widening Kenaston Boulevard and extending Chief Peguis Trail — projects that Browaty passionately supports — are inconsistent with the principles expressed in the city’s proposed strategic priorities action plan. Cerilli is hardly the first person to make this observation, and she is not wrong in her assessment. At a time when the city is struggling to maintain existing infrastructure, and the world is trying to slow climate change, spending a billion dollars on bigger, longer roads is harmful. Perhaps it was because Cerilli is a former NDP MLA, and Browaty is a true-blue Tory. Perhaps it’s Cerilli’s contempt for suburban sprawl, for which Browaty is Winnipeg’s self-proclaimed poster boy. Whatever the reason, Browaty launched into a rant about how advocates such as Cerilli “do not represent most Winnipeggers.” Who, you may ask, are “most Winnipeggers?” They are, according to the councillor, the people who “want their street lights timed well so they can get to work as fast as possible. They want to drive their SUVs through the Tim Hortons drive-thru to get their coffee on the way to hockey practice.” Browaty then proclaimed that delegations at committee are “not relevant” and “not representative of Joe Lunchbox Winnipeg who work all day long, who pay taxes, to provide for their families and make a life for themselves.” Browaty is hardly the first politician to play the Joe Lunchbox card or to disparage lobby groups. Former NDP premier Gary Doer regularly referenced the perspective he gained at his daughter’s soccer games, and called lobby groups “one-trick ponies.” But there’s no evidence he ever insulted any of them face to face. There’s a ton of offensive stuff to unpack here. First and foremost, it’s not Browaty’s job to disparage the people who go before committee or council to express their concerns. Or to label them as representative or unrepresentative. He is an elected official and part of the job is listening to citizens, particularly those of the informed variety, such as Cerilli. More important, however, it is very hard not to gag over Browaty’s absurd description of a typical Winnipegger. No doubt some people living in his ward fit the image of a Tim Hortons- clutching, SUV-driving hockey mom or dad complaining about the timing of traffic lights. But surely Browaty has travelled outside his ward enough to realize the city is so much more than that. Let’s remember that Browaty represents about 45,000 people out a community of more than 750,000 people that has become infinitely more diverse and multicultural in the last 20 years. Even in his own ward, you can bet more people do not own a car or truck, or drive smaller vehicles, than those who pilot SUVs. And perhaps most important, there are a lot of people in this city who “work all day long, who pay taxes to provide for their families and make a life for themselves” who also want to see the city take a more progressive approach to urban planning. Some of them might even agree that extending Chief Peguis Trail is not warranted. Perhaps Browaty has been stuck in his SUV in the drive-thru too long to notice how much the city has evolved. Or, he simply hasn’t learned how to make friends outside his peer group in North Kildonan. Either way, it’s time for Browaty to start showing some respect to the people who take the time to engage with him and broaden his understanding of what it really means to be a Winnipegger. Or, alternatively, find another line of work. Heck, maybe he could ask Joe Lunchbox where he works and try to get a job there. dan.lett(a)winnipegfreepress.com

1 year

WFP: Seeking calm amid traffic chaos (May2'23)

by Beth McKechnie

River Heights group pushes city for changes after vehicle volumes spike on residential street Seeking calm amid traffic chaos https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/2023/05/01/seeking-calm-amid-the-tr… WINNIPEGGER Tim Fennell counted more than 4,200 vehicles driving past his Cambridge Street home in just 24 hours last month. While calling for traffic calming measures, he said an average of 175 vehicles per hour on a “narrow” residential street is far beyond what should be considered safe. “I believe that the City of Winnipeg has engineered a dangerous situation by continuing to direct more and more traffic on a street that they know was never designed to handle the volume,” he told the Free Press on Monday. Fennell, a founding member of a residents group called Calm Cambridge, has raised concerns with city hall and council members about a spike in vehicles using the street between Corydon and Academy avenues in River Heights. He said drivers treat it as a shortcut during construction projects on Harrow and Stafford streets. “We’d like to see some action taken to calm the traffic, at least slow the traffic down,” said Fennell. City spokesman Ken Allen said staff are aware of “renewed interest” in calming measures due, in part, to construction leading to more traffic on Cambridge. “We are currently investigating the situation to determine potential options to address traffic concerns,” he wrote in an email. Coun. Janice Lukes, chairwoman of the public works committee, said traffic volumes are a concern on several streets near the River Heights/ Crescentwood boundary. She hopes staff, who receive many requests, will be able to conduct a community traffic calming study. Lukes said a community plan would be more effective than individual changes. “When you change something on one street, it’s a domino effect on other streets,” said the councillor for Waverley West. “Traffic is like water. It’s just going to go somewhere else.” Lukes acknowledged there has been an “incredible” amount of traffic on Cambridge due to road work. She said traffic calming measures are a priority for city staff. Coun. John Orlikow (River Heights-Fort Garry) said he is working with city employees to address the issues raised by residents. Fennell has been conducting his own traffic counts on Cambridge, north of Corydon. He uses a motion sensor and digital camera. He counted 4,214 vehicles when he went through all the images taken April 26. Much of the traffic was recorded during the morning and afternoon commutes. Fennell said the section of Cambridge between Corydon and Academy shouldn’t be handling so many vehicles in a single day because it is narrower than the stretch south of Corydon. He believes thousands more vehicles per day were using the street to avoid congestion around nearby construction projects last summer. “That’s when we started pushing and saying something has to be done,” said Fennell. In addition to a long-term solution, his group asked for temporary traffic calming measures in a bid to improve safety and livability. Fennell is concerned about the safety of his two children and others who live on or use the street. “We help them cross the street because there are too many cars and they’re going too fast,” he said of his kids. The speed limit outside his home is 50 km/h. When he watches vehicles pass by, most drivers appear to be travelling at or just below the limit. Fennell is in favour of reducing speed limits on residential streets to 30 km/h. In March, the city lowered speed limits to 30 or 40 km/h on four streets in residential areas as part of a pilot project. The city will look at whether drivers slow down and whether the change affects livability and quality of life. In his neighbourhood, Fennell wants the city to consider making physical changes to roadways or turning some into one-way streets. Speed humps were previously installed on Cambridge between Academy and Kingsway. Ian Walker, chair of Safe Speeds Winnipeg, said he observed a lot of traffic when he visited Cambridge on a recent Friday afternoon. “It was like it was being used as a collector or arterial street,” he said. Safe Speeds Winnipeg has lobbied the city to reduce speed limits to 30 km/h in residential areas in a bid to reduce the risk of fatal or serious injury collisions. The group believes the change would help neighbourhoods thrive and encourage residents to be more active. chris.kitching(a)freepress.mb.ca Twitter: @chriskitching

1 year

WFP: Calming traffic by design (Apr29'23)

by Beth McKechnie

CALMING TRAFFIC BY DESIGN THE City of Winnipeg will study ways to calm traffic through design. Council has approved a motion to order a city staff report on methods to add traffic-calming design elements whenever a street is selected for reconstruction. The potential changes could include narrowing roads, adding speed tables (sections of raised road) and/or installing curb extensions to create more space for pedestrians. A report on the matter is expected back in about eight months.

1 year

WFP: Councillor pushes for Portage, Main plebiscite (Apr29'23)

by Beth McKechnie

*Councillor pushes for Portage, Main plebiscite* https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/2023/04/28/councillor-pushes… IF the city wants to reopen Portage Avenue and Main Street to pedestrians in the future, all Winnipeggers should get another vote on the idea first, according to one city councillor. Coun. Russ Wyatt will push for a policy that requires a plebiscite prior to opening the city’s most famous intersection to foot traffic and for council to follow the results. Wyatt said he will raise a motion to that effect at the May council meeting, primarily over road safety concerns. “When you open this intersection to pedestrians, you can expect injuries and fatalities and that’s my biggest concern. I want the citizens of Winnipeg to have a right to weigh in on this issue as they did before. And that will be council policy before any decision,” he said. Plebiscites are typically considered non-binding votes, which is why Wyatt wants the policy to commit city council to respect the results. In 2018, 65 per cent of Winnipeggers who participated voted “no” to reopening the intersection to pedestrians; council has not taken action to permanently reopen it since. Wyatt said he is concerned there may be a new appetite to restore pedestrian access. Debate has raged on for years about allowing pedestrians to cross the street at the surface level of the intersection, something they haven’t been able to do since 1979. Supporters argue pedestrian access would help connect and revitalize downtown, while opponents argue it would snarl traffic and pose safety concerns. The matter was thrust into the spotlight again this week as the city began seeking public feedback on options to enhance the intersection. An online survey and open houses will seek input on a wide variety of ideas, including a sixth-floor-level “sky garden” circular walkway, “monumental” public art, a set of four lookout towers and multi-media lighting poles, along with simpler upgrades that would add trees and/or enhance paving. None of the options would give pedestrians permanent access to cross the street at ground level. While those ideas from a city consultant don’t include cost estimates, Wyatt said he is also concerned about the potential price tag. “I don’t see why the ratepayers of Winnipeg should be subsidizing fancy lights and whatnot that could cost millions. I think there’s higher priorities in our city,” he said. Others argue a policy that guarantees voters a say in the matter wouldn’t make sense. “I think that’s preposterous. I think it’s an abrogation of their duties as elected councillors. We don’t have a plebiscite over the Chief Peguis (Trail) extension. We didn’t have a plebiscite over (building) Bridgwater. It’s just ridiculous,” said Adam Dooley, a spokesperson for the Vote Open campaign in 2018. The city council process already allows the public to provide input on council and committee decisions through a delegation process, he said. A Winnipeg-wide vote would also prevent the city from focusing on feedback from the intersection’s immediate neighbours, Dooley said. “I think if this were a regular public works project, then the residents in the area would have a larger say than what they are having because they overwhelmingly want this to happen: pedestrian access at Portage and Main. And they’re being told they can’t have that because of votes from, mostly, the suburbs.” Coun. Sherri Rollins said she doesn’t support the use of more plebiscites, stressing elected officials shouldn’t shirk their duty to make informed decisions on voters’ behalf. “A simple yes/no (public) vote is just artificially narrow, so I’m not a fan of plebiscites in general. I really feel that they are anti-democratic. They don’t underline or emphasize the accountability that most of us believe is part of being in elected office,” said Rollins. In a brief written statement, Mayor Scott Gillingham said he won’t support Wyatt’s motion. “I don’t think the city needs another plebiscite on Portage and Main.” joyanne.pursaga(a)freepress.mb.ca Twitter: @joyanne_pursaga

1 year

WFP: Special-interest groups don’t represent most Winnipeggers, says Coun. Jeff Browaty (May1'23)

by Beth McKechnie

*Special-interest groups don’t represent most Winnipeggers, says Coun. Jeff Browaty* *Advocates’ relevance questioned* https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/2023/04/28/special-interest-… CITY council’s most senior member has caused outrage after telling members of special interest groups their views are out of step with what most Winnipeggers want. “I appreciate your advocacy, but I don’t think a lot of these opinions are relevant,” North Kildonan Coun. Jeff Browaty, who was first elected in 2006 and is currently finance committee chairman, told Marianne Cerilli, a former MLA and mayoral candidate, after she made a presentation to councillors. “I appreciate everybody who comes to city hall, and takes time out of their day to make presentations — people are very passionate,” Browaty said during the East Kildonan-Transcona community committee Wednesday. “(But) the people who present here really do not represent most Winnipeggers, in my opinion. Each one of us on council represent 45,000-ish people. They’re not looking to blow things up. They don’t have time to come and make presentations all day. They want their street lights timed so they can get to and from work as fast as possible. Or drive their SUVs through Tim Hortons drive-thru to get their coffee on their way to hockey practice. “The consultation we get is not as relevant as the consultation we get as elected officials going door to door every four years to talk to people… it’s not at all as representative of Joe Lunchbox Winnipegger, the people who pay taxes and work all day long to provide for their families, to make a life for themselves.” On Friday, Browaty made an attempt to explain his comments, saying he knew Cerilli had been a politician, so she would have a “thicker skin because of the business we’re in.” But there was little in the way of contrition. “I’m not sending her an apology card today, but all Winnipeggers have the right to have their views and ideas heard. I still do maintain that some of the delegations we hear on budgets are from special interest groups and aren’t representative of the majority of Winnipeg,” he said. “Just because you’ve come to council, your opinions aren’t more important than residents submitting letters to the editor, calling in to talk-radio shows, posting in online community forums or talking directly to elected officials.” Mayor Scott Gillingham said he wasn’t at the meeting, and he doesn’t know everything that was said, so any questions about it should be directed to Browaty. But Gillingham said all councillors work hard to have a good sense of the views of the people they are representing. “We do have an open process at the City of Winnipeg. I appreciate the knowledge and passion that delegations bring to their presentations, and I have learned a lot from this process, but Coun. Browaty is correct that delegations are just one tool that council uses to make its decisions,” he said. “From what I saw (on a social media posting) I didn’t see anything that concerned me, as far as decorum.” Cerilli, a founder of the Transportation and Land Use Coalition, said Browaty’s comments were offensive. “This is not about personal opinion. This is about research and evidence. I was telling (councillors) the city has policy on this and for the city to follow the policy. I think he needs to be more concerned about his conduct with a city committee about following public policy. His ideas about urban development are from the 1950s. That’s where he is,” she said. “I don’t care if he apologizes or not.” Marc Cohoe of advocacy group Bike Winnipeg has been making presentations to councillors since the days when cyclists asking for bike paths were considered members of a fringe group. The city now spends millions of budget dollars to build, maintain and clear them. “I was shocked to hear him. I’ve heard presentations that have changed my mind on things and I’m sure others have, too,” Cohoe said. “It’s important in the democratic process for people to listen. I know this is not the whole process, but we bring in expertise and ideas which are valuable to the city. If you sit and dismiss that public-engagement process, what are you telling people?” Longtime Point Douglas advocate and social activist Sel Burrows said he is likely considered “a special interest delegation” by councillors. “It is important for politicians to hear from others,” Burrows said. “Delegations showing up at city council is part of gradually changing councillors’ thoughts on issues. It is particularly important for suburban councillors, who aren’t aware of inner-city issues where most of the homelessness and crime happens.” Mel Marginet, co-chair of the Transportation and Land Use Coalition, said she believes Browaty’s comments are so serious the mayor should remove him as finance chair. “His comments were deeply shocking. It was deeply insulting to his residents and the city as a whole. He should be pulled from the committee,” Marginet said. Coun. Matt Allard said he not only has no problem with delegations, he welcomes appearances from more of them. “I believe that it is important to encourage and welcome delegations from the public and any organization that has an interest in making the city better and wants to share their ideas about it,” Allard said. — With files from Joyanne Pursaga kevin.rollason(a)freepress.mb.ca

1 year

WFP Analysis: Portage and Main has to be people-friendly (May1'23)

by Beth McKechnie

Portage and Main has to be people-friendly https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/opinion/analysis/2023/05/01/portage-and-m… Is it too soon? Can we talk about Portage and Main again? It’s been almost five years. The vote was clear, but 2018 feels like a different lifetime, doesn’t it? We’ve been through a lot since then, and a lot has changed. The pandemic was devastating for downtown, and its legacy is lasting. Significantly fewer people are now coming downtown to work. Office buildings are sitting empty. Shops, restaurants, and the last movie theatres have closed. Tax incentive programs that were eagerly snapped up by developers in the past, now sit unsubscribed as they shy away from new residential construction in the city centre. As the social, cultural, and economic heart of our city, downtown needs as much help as it can get right now, because no city flourishes without a prosperous and healthy core. Another thing that has changed is we now know what’s going to happen at the city’s storied intersection. The waterproofing membrane that protects the underground concourse at Portage and Main needs to be replaced and the barricades we so passionately fought over are coming down as part of a multi-million-dollar construction project. If we are removing the barricades, what should we put back? A design team was hired to answer that question, and their proposals were recently unveiled for public feedback. The goals for the design are to improve accessibility, increase safety, enhance the pedestrian experience, and attract people back to the intersection, restoring it to a vital public space and needed a catalyst to help bring downtown back to life. Of course, they must do this while maintaining the pedestrian blockades that prevent people from using the intersection if they are not driving in a vehicle. The designers face the daunting task of trying to attract people while at the same time actively repelling them. Attempting to overcome this dichotomy, the proposals made are dramatic, a ring of sky gardens floating six storeys in the air, lookout towers on each corner, or monumental public art that we can drive under. The scale and grandeur of the proposals are striking and demonstrate just how important Portage and Main is in our collective psyche. Portage and Main is not just an intersection. It’s where we come together in celebration, in protest and in mourning. It has always been seen as the heart of the city, even when hidden behind concrete walls. There is significant irony in the fact that we believe Portage and Main is important enough to invest in a big idea that brings it back to life, but we voted so clearly to say we are not willing to spend a few seconds longer in our cars to accomplish this goal organically, and at low cost. The designs presented are beautiful, and would be exciting additions to our city, but without allowing functional day-to-day use of the intersection by pedestrians, creating attractions to draw people is unlikely to find success. The fact that attractions are felt to be necessary to overcome the impacts of our choice to value driving faster over quality of place, accessibility, and economic vibrancy, means they would stand as monuments to our city’s unwavering dedication to the vehicle, even more than the concrete walls are today. These grand gestures would be the embodiment of the gymnastics our city is willing to put itself through to avoid the easy solution, and ensure it remains subservient to vehicles above all else, even in our downtown. Despite the difficult times downtown Winnipeg is going through, Portage and Main is seeing some important sidewalk-level growth. Restaurants like Earls, OEB, 529 Uptown, and Hy’s are opening or expanding, a Goodlife gym has been built, 300 Main and soon 138 Portage East will bring 550 new residential homes to the area, and the MMF is transforming the Bank of Montreal into an important heritage centre. These developments, and the more than 10,000 people working within a block of the intersection, provide more than enough pedestrian gravity to create a vibrant public space simply by inviting people to freely cross the street, restoring Portage and Main to the powerful neighbourhood connector it once was. Despite the post-pandemic need for downtown to be given every opportunity to find new life, it is unlikely we will seize the simple solution, and settle for prettier barricades that can be enjoyed from our cars as we drive past. Thankfully, the distant future of Portage and Main has been cast and it will be as a vibrant public space and downtown focal point. Paired with the redevelopment of Union Station, the Transportation Master Plan envisions a major downtown rapid transit station at Portage and Main, anticipated to serve more than 50,000 people every day. It seems impossible to imagine a major transit hub without reintroducing pedestrians. Portage and Main is really just an intersection. Its traffic volumes, weather, width and whatever else has created its mythological status, isn’t wildly different from Main and Broadway, Portage and Colony, Kenaston and Sterling Lyon, or many large intersections across the world with pedestrian crossings. Until we treat it like it is a normal intersection, it won’t matter how many floating doughnut gardens or elevators to the sky we build. Portage and Main will never successfully attract people if it is simultaneously designed to repel them. *Brent Bellamy is senior design architect for Number Ten Architectural Group.*

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AT-Network May 2023