Winnipeg - Of Interest

[vid]

Originally Posted by h0twired

I would take these stats with a grain of salt.

They only represent crimes that were actually reported.

Well then, the number of crimes that were actually reported has dropped by a considerable amount. So either crime has gone down, or police have gotten lazy.

[JayM]

Originally Posted by vid

Well then, the number of crimes that were actually reported has dropped by a considerable amount. So either crime has gone down, or police have gotten lazy.

well you know they're suppose to be more cops, the more employed the more confusion of whos doing what when and why. just like a union job once ur on just do tidbits here and there, then take off no one will even notice ur gone. so im sure the police have gotten lazy... and the crime has gone down.

[JayM]

Originally Posted by Biff

Odeon Drive-In won't reopen

Updated: April 9 at 03:57 PM CDT

Print Article E-mail Article Winnipeg's last drive-in movie theatre is closing -- and this time it's for real.

lindsey.wiebe@freepress.mb.ca

thats sad, ive always driven by it, but yet never been it in. wont have that expeirence i guess, not in winnipeg.

[rrskylar]

Local CTV Reporter Charged With Assualt

A local television reporter will appear in court next week, charged with allegedly assaulting his wife.

City police charged CTV reporter Kevin Armstrong with assault, uttering threats and possession of a dangerous weapon following an alleged incident March 10.

Court documents identify the alleged weapon as a dog bone.

Reached at work yesterday, Armstrong, 31, declined to comment on the allegations but said CTV was aware of the charges.

However, Armstrong's lawyer Evan Roitenberg said the allegations are "completely false."

Winnipeg Sun


"Mr. Armstrong looks forward to an opportunity to clear his good name," Roitenberg said.

PERSONNEL

Acting news director Karen Mitchell would not confirm whether the station had been notified of the charges.

"We don't talk about personnel issues," Mitchell said.

According to the broadcaster's website, Armstrong joined CTV in 2003, first serving as a sports reporter and anchor. He became a news reporter in 2005, covering the political beat.

Armstrong is scheduled to appear in court April 9.

[wags_in_the_peg]

From Today's Free Press.

interesting, what the youth want. "Things like environmental stewardship, social conscience, vitality, earning potential, mobility, downtown lifestyle, broader entertainment choices and learning culture came up as real priorities. .... "low cost housing is not my dream"


Build it, and they may stay
Youth conference designed to make Winnipeg the place to be
Dave Angus

As I get older, it occurs to me that I should probably start passing on my wisdom to the next generation -- to take what I have learned and share it so that they can learn from my mistakes and my successes. It took a young lady from Shanghai, China, to make me realize that I have much more to learn from today's youth than they have to learn from me.

A few years ago, I was invited to participate in a forum with a group of university graduate students to discuss Winnipeg. Included in the group were two international students from Shanghai who were pursuing master's degrees in planning. I nervously asked them if they were planning to stay in Winnipeg upon graduation, while I prepared in my mind the litany of reasons for them to stay.

One of the students, a young woman, politely answered with an almost apologetic tone, "We are going back to Shanghai." At that point I began my usual Chamber of Commerce sales pitch for Winnipeg mentioning a number of our attributes and closing with our affordability. The student smiled and said, "Mr. Angus... low-cost housing isn't my dream." In an instant, my view of the next generation and our city's ability to attract and keep them changed forever. That young woman helped me realize that unless we create a city in which our youth can pursue their dreams and a city that respects their values, we have little hope of success in keeping and attracting the bright minds that our community needs.

It was with this lesson in mind that the Winnipeg chamber committed itself to fully engaging the next generation, starting with high school students. With no idea of what to expect, we engaged a group of 16 students that we call our "student council," in a process of developing a new innovative program that will serve to provide greater awareness of career opportunities in Winnipeg and will also provide a vehicle for high school students to articulate the kind of city they want to live and work in.

The first session with the students represented the most worthwhile three hours I have spent since I began my job nine years ago.

I remember asking the group a question, and all 16 hands going up with an answer. They were not used to being asked their opinion and appreciated the opportunity, but they also had a lot to say.

When it came to career opportunities, they had great input. The information they get from high school staff is insufficient. The information that they get from their parents, often the most influential adviser, is in their terms, brutal. Both sources tend to have certain biases that provide a slanted view of career choices. As an example, we have a whole generation of kids who were brainwashed by their parents to believe that pursuing an opportunity in the trades represented failure. A lack of awareness of new and ever-changing career opportunities in Winnipeg creates the inaccurate perception that Winnipeg is not a great place to pursue a career. A one-stop-shop website, career mentors and job shadowing experiences were all ideas that form the basis for a new way of creating awareness.

We also provided an opportunity for the students to weigh in on the city of Winnipeg. First, it was refreshing to have a discussion about Winnipeg without crime and potholes coming up. Neither of these two Winnipeg obsessions were mentioned once. It became abundantly clear that the next generation, much like the research tells us, has a whole new and different value set than any other previous generation. Things like environmental stewardship, social conscience, vitality, earning potential, mobility, downtown lifestyle, broader entertainment choices and learning culture came up as real priorities.

We know that in today's world, if a young person acquires a good skill set, they can work almost anywhere. That is why lifestyle is becoming the dominant criteria for choosing a city.

As the discussion continued it became clear that as I learned what was important to them and they learned about some of the attributes and potential of Winnipeg, we began to form a partnership that shared a common goal. Giving our youth a seat at the table, giving them the keys to the city and giving an opportunity to affect their future will go a long way to keeping them in Winnipeg and will provide an environment that will attract youth from elsewhere.

It's now time for us to invite the rest of the high school community to join us in this mission as we will be hosting a full session entitled "Leadercon -- Engaging the Next Generation" on Wednesday.

We will be asking a broader group of students and staff from our high schools to help us build a model that will be unique in Canada. The city that does the best job at engaging their youth will have the best results in keeping and attracting the bright minds.

We are in good hands with our future leaders. I could not be more impressed with our youth. The decisions we make today are building the city they will inherit. We need a Winnipeg in which their dreams can be pursued.

If you want to know how to do it, just ask them. They will be quick to tell you -- or at the very least, send you a text message... lol.

Dave Angus is president of the Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce.

[flatlander]

Dave Angus for mayor.

[Greco Roman]

Great article!

So what is the next step to make this a reality?

[wags_in_the_peg]

Bring back the NHL and the 30-50 yr olds will stay

[hexrae]

Originally Posted by wags_in_the_peg

Bring back the NHL and the 30-50 yr olds will stay

To hell with 30-50 yr olds...or at least for only 5 more years, after which, embrace them

Great article, but how profound is it really from a "I didn't know that" perspective? The youth have their own opinions and dreams, go figure.

[h0twired]

Originally Posted by flatlander

Dave Angus for mayor.

Thats probably not a bad idea...

[Spocket]

I remember asking the group a question, and all 16 hands going up with an answer. They were not used to being asked their opinion and appreciated the opportunity, but they also had a lot to say.

Is this guy kidding ? Where has he been the last twenty years ? That's all we do is tell kids we care about what they have to say and ask them for their opinions. I guess he's never heard of the "Me Generation". Well, golly, why would a reporter be aware of this ?

Besides all of that, I found this article to be pretty light on substance and pretty heavy on fluff. Of course these people don't care about low-cost housing. They all expect to land their dream job and since it pays well they'll be able to afford whatever they want. It has nothing to do with reality so yeah, of course they want fun zones and bright flashing lights. Since when did the youth generally want much different ? Same product, different packaging.

And please...they want environmental stewardship ? Ha ha ha...yeah, whatever. The vast majority of our 'youth' don't even know what the hell that is and frankly, why should they ? They just know they probably shouldn't burn tires in the back yard.
It's idealism and it's particular to the youth. Nothing new there. I wish I had this guy's job so that I could write this stuff and get paid for it. Good work Mr. Angus , you've put your finger on the pulse of....the same thing we've always had our finger on the pulse of.

[vid]

That's great. Here in Thunder Bay there's a real "Fuck the youth. Who needs them?" attitude. By 2030, Thunder Bay will be the first city in Canada to die of old age.

[hexrae]

Winnipeg Free Press

Eco-Peg Pass launches today

Updated: April 26 at 07:27 AM CDT

Green-minded shoppers will soon have another reason to hit up local stores: an eco-pass that earns them discounts for Winnipeg artisans and small businesses.

"We're hoping to have as many (businesses) on board as we can for the launch next weekend," said Dallas Jasper, co-founder of www.eco-peg.com.

The site formally launches today with its new Eco-Peg Pass: a button that lets shoppers get discounts at environmentally-friendly local businesses, including a fused glass artist, a yoga studio, and a massage therapist, to name a few. All stores have to either benefit the environment or promote health, wellness and well-being, according to the website.

Jasper said the group "wanted to figure out a way for little local businesses and artisans to get a bit more exposure." So far they've sold about 50 of the $3 buttons, which they saw as a better option than throw-away coupons.

The full list of partner stores will be unveiled today online to coincide with a launch party, happening between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. at the Ralph Connor House at 54 West Gate, and featuring live music and a local vendors' market.

[flatlander]

Manitoba ties Alberta's growth rate
By: Murray McNeill
Updated: April 28 at 10:47 AM CDT
PRINT ARTICLE E-MAIL ARTICLE
Manitoba tied with Alberta for the second-highest economic growth rate in the country last year, according to preliminary year-end figures released today by Statistics Canada.
The federal agency said both provinces finished the year with real gross domestic product (GDP) growth of 3.3 per cent.
While that was well above the national average of 2.7 per cent, it still paled in comparison to Newfoundland and Labrador’s staggering 9.1 per cent GDP growth for the year.
“Increased oil and mineral extraction, combined with strong world commodity prices, became the catalyst for growth in 2007, more than three-quarters of which could be attributed to mining activities,” the agency said of Newfoundland and Labrador’s eye-popping performance.
In Manitoba, a 7.4 per cent growth in labour income had a positive impact on home building and retail trade, the agency said.
“Construction investment advanced at a feverish pace, with work ongoing at several large projects around the province,” it added. “A recovery in manufacturing, particularly primary metals and transportation equipment, resulted in goods production outpacing services production again in 2007.”
It said Canada’s GDP growth of 2.7 per cent matched the country’s average rate of growth for the last five years.
murray.mcneill@freepress.mb.ca

[Tower Crane]

Keep it up team 'toba' . Maybe there will be a strong province to come back to when I'm done here in Alberta.

[fengshui]

Reminder that this weekend is the neighbourhood walking tours in memory of Jane Jacobs. There are at least 12 locations throughout Winnipeg - West End, Downtown, Point Douglas, West Broadway, Spence, Wolseley, Riverview, etc.

Schedules are here. Get out and have a look around, the weather will be fine!

[Biff]

Manitoba News Release
............................................................


May 8, 2008

PROVINCE WILL EXEMPT CITY OF WINNIPEG'S NEW HOTEL TAX FROM RETAIL SALES TAX

An amendment under the province's Retail Sales Tax Act will be introduced later this session that would provide an exemption for the City of Winnipeg and all municipal hotel taxes from the retail sales tax, Finance Minister Greg Selinger announced today.

"This exemption from the Retail Sales Tax will ensure the province does not receive any additional revenues because of the introduction of a municipal hotel tax," said Selinger. "The province's retail sales tax also does not apply to the City of Winnipeg's taxes on electricity and natural gas".

A by-law passed by any municipality imposing a tax on the purchase of short-tem accommodation under the provincial government's Municipal Revenue (Grants and Taxation) Act, must be also approved by the lieutenant governor in council, which has occurred. The City of Winnipeg had requested this approval.

- 30 -

[fengshui]

Someone must not be pleased with Man-Shield's work. What a morning wake-up call!

"A prominent city businessman was attacked on Corydon Avenue earlier this week by suspects armed with baseball bats, sources say. They identified the victim as local developer Joe Bova. Sources said he had just left an establishment when he was attacked by a group of men as he was getting into his vehicle. Bova declined to talk about the incident when contacted Friday. Police would only say that a 61-year-old man was seriously assaulted in the 600 block of Corydon Avenue at about 8 a.m. May 5. He was taken to hospital in stable condition with non-life-threatening injuries. The assault is still under investigation."

[fengshui]

The GTA is embracing density for its suburbs? Wonders never cease.


So, what's out?
Sprawling surface parking lots; city centres anchored by shopping malls; and an endless sea of detached homes on large lots.


And what's in?
Downtown hubs fed by public transit; densely populated communities along major roads; and buildings that have little or no setback from the street.


Valerie Shuttleworth, Markham's ebullient director of planning and urban design, sums up a recurring theme among many planners and politicians.
The goal, she says, is a "six- to eight- to 10-storey European urban centre where the pedestrian takes (precedence) over the vehicle and transit is key."


"That's the evolution of growth in the GTA," says Shuttleworth.

[viperred88]

'Spirited' away
By: Matthew Rankin

Updated: June 7 at 02:21 PM CDT / Winnipeg Free Press

When I came to New York City for work six weeks ago, I thought I was leaving Winnipeg. But it turns out I was wrong. Winnipeg culture is sprouting up like tulip bulbs all over Manhattan.

Or so it would seem. In the past five years, some of Winnipeg's most familiar icons have set up shop in New York. Feeling homesick, I decided to check them out.


Enlarge Image

My plan was to celebrate Manitoba Day by cramming as much Spirited Energy as possible into a single New York day. I would visit the new Peter Nygard Fashion Village in Times Square, I would invest in some Chip & Pepper Wet Wear in Soho, and attempt to buy a copy of Tim Higgins' earnest coffee-table book, The Bears on Broadway: A Love Affair in Concrete, at McNally Robinson's Manhattan location.

New York City seems like a fitting place to look for Spirited Energy. After all, wasn't it a New York-based advertising firm that devised our provincial slogan? I know I'll find some!


NYGARD

Monday, May 12. Manitoba Day.


Enlarge Image

I set out at dawn. First stop, Nygard World Headquarters in Times Square.

I'm excited. Perhaps no Winnipegger is more Energetically Spirited than Peter Nygard. This flamboyant self-made millionaire moved his empire to New York in 2007, nestling his command centre into the bombastic glitter of Broadway.

I emerge from the subway with eyes peeled for a gigantic blue N, the kind that frame every Nygard Fashion Village in Winnipeg. Here in New York, I expect to find Ns so huge that they are visible from space. I want to see Spirited Energy at its most triumphant and hubristic! I want to see Nygard's chuckling face on every light board!

But there are no Ns in sight.

Eventually I come upon a very demure Nygard banner. The N can't be more than three feet tall, lost amid the twinkling lights of Broadway.

Upon investigation, I find that this is only a corporate office, not a Fashion Village. In fact, Nygard has no retail outlets in New York City, or anywhere in New York state.

Are those Tan-Jay Feathertouch sweatpants we Winnipeggers take for granted in fact an exclusive luxury that New Yorkers can only dream of?

This discovery gives me a thrill, but it has done nothing to alleviate my homesickness. I move on.


CHIP & PEPPER

When identical twins Chip and Pepper Foster started their line of surfer clothes in Winnipeg in 1987, they very quickly became pop culture titans.

I am no fashion-plate, but Chip & Pepper are sacred Winnipeg myths to me.

In my Grade 6 graduation photo, at least two thirds of my classmates, including myself, are wearing fluorescent tie-dyed T-shirts from the Chip & Pepper "Wet Wear" line. Our Walkmans buzzing with Crash Test Dummies, our bellies bloated with Old Dutch, we were the bright, jingoistic future of Winnipeg!

The rise of B.U.M. Equipment sent Chip & Pepper to a watery death midway through the 1990s, but they resurfaced in 2003 with a line of designer jeans. In 2005, they opened their doors in the heart of New York's fashion district.

I get caught in a rain storm; tracking puddles into the middle of this stylish shop, I can tell the salespeople have rarely seen anything more pathetic than this soggy-socked Winnipegger.

The rise of B.U.M. Equipment sent Chip & Pepper to a watery death midway through the 1990s, but they resurfaced in 2003 with a line of designer jeans. In 2005, they opened their doors in the heart of New York's fashion district.

I get caught in a rain storm and by the time I get to Chip & Pepper I am totally drenched. Tracking rain puddles into the middle of this stylish shop, I can tell the sales representatives have rarely seen anything more pathetic than this soggy-socked Winnipegger.

"Got any Wet Wear?" I ask.

"No," is the answer. "That line has been discontinued."

I look around for some little clue that belies the Winnipeg origins of Chip & Pepper, a knowing wink to Winnipeg nostalgiacs like myself.

I go to the jeans rack and grab one of the price tags. It reads, "Chip n' Pepper, Los Angeles, California, 1987." I flip it over and find an even more egregious betrayal: $169 for a pair of jeans. No Winnipegger would ever pay such an outrageous price!

Miffed, I leave immediately. Goodbye, Chip & Pepper! I don't know you anymore!


McNALLY ROBINSON

Only a few blocks from Chip & Pepper, New York's McNally Robinson is a very pleasant bookshop. Open since 2005, it's a little nicer than the ones in Winnipeg. The Tea Room isn't quaking with River Heights sycophants, queue-cutting for the last Imperial cookie. Rather, it is filled with calm, young New Yorkers, gazing industriously into their laptops. It's the middle of a weekday afternoon, but there is a lineup at the cash register. Literary events appear to be organized almost nightly. It has all the trappings of a very smart, successful bookstore.

But I search in vain for Spirited Energy. There are no pious images of Wiebe, Oberman and Birdsell hanging from the rafters. I look for Guy Maddin amid the film books and find only Rue McClanahan. I ask a clerk if the Bears on Broadway book is in their database and her computer begins to groan with non-comprehension.

I ask to speak with Sarah McNally, the Winnipeg-born owner of the New York operation.

McNally emerges from her office. She is friendly and gracious, but I manage to annoy her almost immediately by referring to her bookshop as a Manitoba business.

"I don't see myself as a Manitoba business," she says, "rather as a New York one."

She meticulously explains that the New York McNally Robinson is no branch plant. It has no formal connection to her mother's business in Winnipeg. In fact, Sarah McNally is putting a definitive end to the confusion this summer by changing the name of the store to McNally Jackson, after her husband Chris Jackson. McNally has been in New York since 1999. She's a New Yorker.

Fulminating with provincialism, I press McNally. Surely Winnipeg can steal a few Spirited Energy points out of her success!

"Isn't there anything?" I ask.

"The shelves," she says.

I look around. The shelving units appear to be identical to the ones in the Winnipeg McNally Robinson. McNally confirms that these shelves are exact replicas -- down to the slant, tilt and width -- built by the same mill worker with the same medium density fibreboard.

"It's an upscale particleboard," says McNally.


MANITOBA'S

I stroll through the East Village and I stumble upon Manitoba's. It's a dive bar owned by Richard "Handsome Dick" Manitoba, who once fronted The Dictators, a 1970s rock band.

I've heard of Handsome Dick Manitoba because he recently threatened to sue a Canadian indie rock outfit that was calling itself Manitoba. The Bronx-born Richard Blum, who legally changed his name Manitoba, warned the Canadians that he alone had the right to call himself Manitoba. The Canadians caved in, renaming themselves Caribou. I wonder if Dick has been giving the Spirited Energy people any trouble.

I go in. The bar is completely empty, except for the bartender.

I immediately take out my birth certificate and show it to him. "Look!" I say, "I'm from Manitoba!"

Without taking his eyes off a gigantic TV in the corner, the barkeep complains about all the 'Tobans who come into Manitoba's thinking it's a Canadian bar.

"They've never even heard of Handsome Dick!" he snaps.

I start to feel like a stupid, sniveling provincialist. I feel bad for pestering McNally to show her Winnipeg colours. Who the hell am I, Marcy Markusa? I should just feel proud to see my fellow Winnipeggers striding forth so brilliantly in this gigantic world capital. Isn't that good enough? I mean, what would end this quest for affirmation? Ray St.Germain at Carnegie Hall? An inflatable Kelekis float in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade?

I guess I just want to feel some kind of connectedness to Winnipeg, kind of like the Mexicans who live in my neighbourhood have built a comradeship out of their common diaspora.

Suddenly, I hear a familiar song. On the TV, I see a commercial for Ore-Ida's extra-crispy french fries. The ad demonstrates how "other leading fries" go all soggy when drenched in ketchup. But the Extra-Crispy fry, it is alleged, will stand up to any onslaught of condiments, remaining firm and crunchy throughout. Accompanying this demonstration is none other than Burton Cummings, singing his 1976 motivational ballad Stand Tall.

I am suddenly filled with gratitude. Burton! The finest Winnipegger! Lending his angelic voice to the cause of tumescent American potatoes. My back arches, my eyes mist over and I am suddenly filled with Winnipeg pride, right in the middle of Manhattan.

"Did you know it's Manitoba Day today?" I ask the barkeep.

"I'll take your word for it," he says.

Matthew Rankin is a filmmaker from Winnipeg. Betraying the "stay-in-Manitoba" dictates of the Spirited Energy campaign, he went to New York City for work in April