Winnipeg | Osborne Village & Fort Rouge | Developments & Discussions

[jim_bred]

Originally Posted by WinCitySparky

https://www.ctvnews.ca/winnipeg/article/city-lists-prime-osborne-village-lot-for-165m/

Lot at Stradbrook and Osborne up for sale by city officially

What a prime A+ location, I hope they get it right.

[trueviking]

pretty crazy that such a prime piece of property has been a parking lot for 60 years.

[EndIt]

Originally Posted by trueviking

pretty crazy that such a prime piece of property has been a parking lot for 60 years.

Yeah the machinations of commercial real estate are strange. I live in west end Toronto now, and you'd think every last scrap of land would be in a frenzy to build and build big, but there's a surprising amount of empty lots and vacant buildings hanging on for years on end for no apparent reason (eg. 786 & 989 College, 1334 Bloor West all vacant since 2019).

[ColdRain&Snow]

Originally Posted by EndIt

Yeah the machinations of commercial real estate are strange. I live in west end Toronto now, and you'd think every last scrap of land would be in a frenzy to build and build big, but there's a surprising amount of empty lots and vacant buildings hanging on for years on end for no apparent reason (eg. 786 & 989 College, 1334 Bloor West all vacant since 2019).

If you own a vacant lot, no reason to sell it right away if you can just wait and the value goes up while you do nothing. Property taxes on vacant lots are very low.

[ColdRain&Snow]

Seems that 109 Osborne St (old Shop Take Care location) has been leased.

https://www.iciproperties.com/listings/109osborne

[Wpg_Guy]

Thanks for the picture updates ColdRain&Snow

[cheswick]

c

Originally Posted by ColdRain&Snow

If you own a vacant lot, no reason to sell it right away if you can just wait and the value goes up while you do nothing. Property taxes on vacant lots are very low.

There's an opportunity cost to sitting on vacant property. Yeah it'll increase in value but so would a broad market ETF. Holding a vacant lot in Winnipeg over the past 10 or 30 years would have less than half the return of holding the TSX Composite index.

[Mr Tall Forehead]

Originally Posted by cheswick

c

There's an opportunity cost to sitting on vacant property. Yeah it'll increase in value but so would a broad market ETF. Holding a vacant lot in Winnipeg over the past 10 or 30 years would have less than half the return of holding the TSX Composite index.

Probably not if you’re running a dingy surface parking lot on it. Which is why some of these lots are generational.

[ColdRain&Snow]

Originally Posted by cheswick

c

There's an opportunity cost to sitting on vacant property. Yeah it'll increase in value but so would a broad market ETF. Holding a vacant lot in Winnipeg over the past 10 or 30 years would have less than half the return of holding the TSX Composite index.

Sure, but if you're investing in a business (by buying stocks) you're helping to grow that business and therefore grow the economy. Businesses produce goods and employ people meaning that investing in businesses is productive for the economy. Vacant lots do not produce goods or employ people, they are a blight on neighbourhoods and hinder economic growth. This is the main argument why vacant land should be taxed aggressively.

[cheswick]

Originally Posted by Mr Tall Forehead

Probably not if you’re running a dingy surface parking lot on it. Which is why some of these lots are generational.

Right. Assuming no passive income on it, it hasn't made much financial sense. No idea what the income stream is for parking in Winnipeg. But to the point above, proper taxation would make such propositions less financially viable.

[borkborkbork]

Originally Posted by cheswick

Right. Assuming no passive income on it, it hasn't made much financial sense. No idea what the income stream is for parking in Winnipeg. But to the point above, proper taxation would make such propositions less financially viable.

I once talked to someone whose family owned a bunch of very low-rent kind of land in town. Underused industrial lots, parking, etc.

The reason for that choice was basically that these assets generated just enough cash to support family lifestyles, are hard to mismanage even if they're run by idiot children, and are illiquid, so nobody can sell off their part of the family inheritance a few dollars at a time.

Basically, it's not a good investment, but it's a good investment vehicle for families with more money than financial acumen who value capital preservation over everything else.

[Mr. Big Nip]

The house at the corner of McMillan and Wentworth was demolished today. I believe there was some multi-family development proposed for the site awhile back. Looks like that's going forward.

[ColdRain&Snow]

Originally Posted by Mr. Big Nip

The house at the corner of McMillan and Wentworth was demolished today. I believe there was some multi-family development proposed for the site awhile back. Looks like that's going forward.

Welcome to the forum!

[Wpg_Guy]

Originally Posted by Mr. Big Nip

The house at the corner of McMillan and Wentworth was demolished today. I believe there was some multi-family development proposed for the site awhile back. Looks like that's going forward.

Page 1 of Winnipeg Construction XI is regularly updated with most developments.

850 McMillan Avenue
Location: 850 McMillan Avenue
Developer: 10212488 Manitoba Ltd. (Mackenzie Jefferson)
Architect: Articulated Design Union
Status: In development
Documents: VARIANCE: 25-116548/C | Appeal Committee May 21, 2025
Media:-
Description: 3-storey building with 9 residential units
Permits: 25-266714 DP-2025-12-10, Permit. This child permit is created for the purpose of concurrent review of Variance application of the parent Development permit for the development of 3 storey, 9 unit multi-family dwelling

[Mr. Big Nip]

Thanks! I discovered SSP last year and have been lurking on it pretty regularly. It's a cool little community. I love seeing everything that's happening around town, so I decided to jump in and contribute a bit haha

[Wpg_Guy]

Originally Posted by Mr. Big Nip

Thanks! I discovered SSP last year and have been lurking on it pretty regularly. It's a cool little community. I love seeing everything that's happening around town, so I decided to jump in and contribute a bit haha

Thanks for posting, looking forward to more.

[bomberjet]

Welcome Mr. Nip!

[Wpg_Guy]

City, developer compromise on size of Osborne Village housing development
By: Joyanne Pursaga
Friday, Jan. 30, 2026

A compromise has paved the way for an Osborne Village housing development to proceed at a reduced height.

This week, a final appeal committee decision removed parking and affordable-rent requirements that a developer feared could kill the project.

“We’ll lower the building, reduce the height and that was the compromise…. We’ve been looking to advance something on here. It’s been a vacant lot for quite some time,” said planner John Wintrup.



Wintrup said the final plan is something property owner Jerry Cianflone, who owns the Pizza Hotline chain, can accept.

The development proposal initially called for a seven-storey, 72-unit building to be constructed at 36 Roslyn Rd., where the former John C. Falls heritage building once stood.

In 2022, the city removed a heritage protection from that building after learning it had fallen into such disrepair that it would cost millions to renovate. That allowed the structure, which was built in 1907, to be demolished.

The developer successfully appealed a city centre community committee decision, which had voted to cap the project to 44 housing units and require half to have affordable rents. That decision also required 43 parking spots, instead of the proposed 21, as well as larger yards around the property.

On Wednesday, city council’s appeal committee cast a final vote to approve 44 total units with smaller yards, no requirement for affordable housing and 21 parking stalls.

The change will result in a five- or six-storey building that will produce less income than the initial plan but should still work, said Wintrup.

The city’s previous parking and affordable-housing requirements would have prevented the project from being viable, he said.

“They wanted half our units to be affordable and we’ve had no dialogue with the Province of Manitoba on (subsidies to support that). And they wanted… part of the parking to go underground, so you would have had an affordable dwelling unit subsidized by the province with an underground parking stall. I can’t see why a government would be funding… that,” he said.

Since the final vote allows smaller yards, the building can cover more land while still providing enough parking space, said Wintrup.

Coun. Janice Lukes, who served as chairwoman of the appeal hearing, said the compromise allows more housing to be constructed where the city hopes to attract it.

“They are in a zoned high-density area with stellar transit… (and) it optimizes the space,” said Lukes (Waverley West).

While the city has worked to attract construction of more affordable homes, other types of housing are also needed, she said.

“We can’t force people to (build) affordable housing. Affordable housing only occurs when it’s subsidized. These (projects have) small profit margins,” said Lukes.

Winnipeg Free Press

[drew]

^ is that the same John Wintrup of the Granite Curling Club parking lot fame?

[bomberjet]

pfft.