Winnipeg | Osborne Village & Fort Rouge | Developments & Discussions

[bomberjet]

Hoping the village takes off (again) and becomes the destination it should be!

[lbnevs]

Does anyone know what is going on with the Gas Station Theatre's new courtyard? They've built what looks like a half-meter-high gravel berm under the fence and around the site. It looks atrocious so far... hoping this isn't the finished product

never mind, answered my own question. they're planting double-flowering plum trees into it...

[Wpg_Guy]

‘Good deal of synergy’ brewing in South Osborne
Under construction Dastardly Villain could join Nonsuch, Good Neighbour as potential pub crawl core: BIZ
Gabrielle Piché
Friday, Jul. 31, 2026




Pub crawls could become the next South Osborne draw.

At least, that’s the hope of entrepreneurs in the area as three breweries build out locations in the Winnipeg neighbourhood.

Nonsuch Brewing Co. and Good Neighbour Brewing Co. have opened storefronts along the strip in the past three months. Dastardly Villain is creating a taproom and nanobrewery.

“I’m really excited to have these pubs and taprooms,” said Ben Shantz, board chair of the South Osborne Business Improvement Zone.

“I hope that having multiples — three of them — will actually create a good deal of synergy in the area, where people can hop from one to another.”

The BIZ runs local restaurant tours. It hasn’t talked about an organized pub crawl, but that would be a “natural expansion,” Shantz said.

The breweries say they independently decided to open.

Nonsuch Brewing was approved for up to three liquor sales locations, leading to its expansion beyond the Exchange District, co-founder Matthew Sabourin said.

It opened its 551 Osborne St. store mid-July. The shop — which sells beer and seltzers — will move from the main floor to the basement once construction finishes. The ground level will become a tasting room and snack bar, likely sometime this winter, Sabourin said.

“Someone had written in an article (that) South Osborne was a beer desert … that was the right way of saying it,” Sabourin said. “I sought to try and correct that.

“A number of us thought the same thing, and I think that just shows the potential of the neighbourhood.”

Construction on the former tax service centre has been a “brutal long haul — but we’re getting there,” Sabourin said.

Nonsuch has had the 960-square-foot space since February 2025, he added.

He cited unexpected costs, permits and design work as slowing progress. Tariffs on steel and aluminum, among other levies, took effect during the time period.

Dastardly Villain has also pushed its opening date.

Owner Scott Tackaberry is building a nanobrewery and steampunk-themed taproom inside 726 Osborne St., where he formerly ran Grape & Grain, a home-brewing supply store.

Renovations on the 100-year-old building began around two years ago. Permits and bringing the building up to code — drywalling, replacing furnaces — has stretched the timeline, Tackaberry said.

Dastardly Villain might open in the spring, he added. He’s planning murals, sculptures and pictures of villains for the 100-seat taproom. An outdoor patio seating another 100 is planned.

For now, Dastardly Villain keeps making its five core beers at Torque Brewing and its seasonal beers, typically, at Oxus Brewing Co.

Good Neighbour opened its South Osborne takeout beer shop — at 683 Osborne St. — in May. An unfinished space behind a fridge wall could become a bar, potentially by 2027, its owners told the Free Press at the time.

Good Neighbour is converting a former upholstery store.

“Some people might look at it like, ‘Oh no, you’re getting competition,’” Tackaberry said. “But I know these people and they’re good people, and it’s a good industry.

“I think … we will become a little tourist strip, like Osborne Village or Little Italy on Corydon.”

He created Dastardly Villain — and shuttered Grape & Grain — in response to online sellers taking home-brewing retailers’ business, he said. Dastardly Villain’s beer hit shelves in 2021; Grape & Grain closed in early 2025.

The Osborne stretch hasn’t had a taproom since Luxalune Gastropub shuttered in 2016, said Shantz, who’s been general manager of GameKnight Games for 14 years.

“(The business landscape) has been improving massively over the past decade,” Shantz said. “It’s had a bit of ups and downs, but generally speaking, it’s been developing really nicely.”

Black Market Provisions entered the area in 2019; it’s now doubling its footprint. The specialty goods retailer is taking over its neighbour’s 600-sq.-ft. space at 552 Osborne St.

A retirement led to a bookkeeping service’s closure, said Alana Fiks, co-owner of Black Market Provisions.

“We need more square feet,” Fiks said. “It’ll allow us to give our kitchen some breathing room, and then also will allow us to expand our retail.”

Staff have been cooking and baking in a 300-sq.-ft. commercial kitchen. The shop itself is another 300 sq. ft.

Post-expansion, Black Market Provisions will likely stock more kids’ items and stationery. Employees will have a doubled kitchen area for labelling and packing, Fiks said.

Black Market aims to open before Christmas.

“These openings are very welcome because they’re going against a troubling national … trend,” said Robin Bezte, a Prairies senior policy analyst with the Canadian Federation of Independent Business.

The CFIB has called Canada a place of “entrepreneurial drought.” Rising operating costs, taxes, red tape and labour issues hamper businesses, Bezte added.

Black Market Provisions plans to trade a warehouse it uses for the storefront expansion, meaning the company is swapping space more than growing, in terms of square feet.

“We’re not really risk takers,” Fiks said. “We definitely benefit from a very, very supportive neighbourhood and surrounding areas.”

Lord Roberts housed 5,225 residents in 2021, up 5.2 per cent from 2016, census data show. Riverview, another South Osborne neighbourhood, saw a drop of 0.1 per cent (to 4,265 people) during the same timeframe.


RUTH BONNEVILLE / FREE PRESS

Dastardly Villain Ale owner Scott Tackaberry says the brewery will open in the spring.


RUTH BONNEVILLE / FREE PRESS FILES

Good Neighbour Kayla Goossen helps out a customer.


BROOK JONES / FREE PRESS FILES
Black Market Provisions is doubling its footprint.

Winnipeg Free Press

[Wpg_Guy]

A New Chapter Begins! Brickhouse Gym 418 Gertrude Relocation!

After many incredible years at 418 Gertrude Avenue, we’re excited to announce that we’re relocating to 2 Donald Street—just around the corner from our current location.

418 Gertrude will officially close on Monday, August 24, 2026, and we’re planning to open our brand-new, fully renovated home in early September 2026.

During the transition, members will continue to have access to our Madison and Waverley locations, so your training doesn’t have to stop.

While we’re saying goodbye to a building that’s been home for so many years, what makes Brickhouse Gym special has never been the address—it’s our incredible community. We’re excited to bring that same energy into a fresh new space and continue serving Osborne Village for years to come.

Thank you to everyone who has been part of the journey. We can’t wait to welcome you to 2 Donald Street this September!

Stay tuned for our official reopening date !

brickhousegym

[lbnevs]

Originally Posted by Wpg_Guy

brickhousegym

Architecture is Cibinel. Won't win a beauty contest ("EIFS and EIFS with stenciled brick finish") but it's replacing a pretty forgettable single-storey stretch.

[FactaNV]

Originally Posted by lbnevs

Architecture is Cibinel. Won't win a beauty contest ("EIFS and EIFS with stenciled brick finish") but it's replacing a pretty forgettable single-storey stretch.

Good filler honestly. Pretty unassuming street.

[lbnevs]

Originally Posted by FactaNV

Good filler honestly. Pretty unassuming street.

Better than what's there, and more of it. It was nice having Better Than Nature so close by, but the gym is moving a block away, and we're getting ~40 new units of housing in the neighbourhood. I'm not complaining!

[trueviking]

Originally Posted by lbnevs

Does anyone know what is going on with the Gas Station Theatre's new courtyard? They've built what looks like a half-meter-high gravel berm under the fence and around the site. It looks atrocious so far... hoping this isn't the finished product

never mind, answered my own question. they're planting double-flowering plum trees into it...

it's something else....my guess is that it is a way to get around the zoning variance required for a fence taller than 4 feet. They get their 8 foot fence by creating an artificial berm which they consider to be at grade. Feels like those loose rocks will be gone after a couple winters.

[Malcsta]

I've been a member at that gym for the past 3-4 years and although I'm sad to see it go, the place is kinda falling apart. Although I've always appreciated its grittiness.

Anyone know if the new location down the block will have a more space for equipment? Or will it be roughly the same size?

[theruler462]

My daughter dances at Bend Academy which is currently at 2 Donald but planning a move to St-Vital this fall. I don't know if Brickhouse will be moving into the same space because the Bend is supposed to start the fall season at their current location before moving a little later. September 2026 would be too early.

[lbnevs]

Originally Posted by trueviking

it's something else....my guess is that it is a way to get around the zoning variance required for a fence taller than 4 feet. They get their 8 foot fence by creating an artificial berm which they consider to be at grade. Feels like those loose rocks will be gone after a couple winters.

yeah considering this began as a response to safety/security issues, it seems surprising that they've put an unlimited supply of small sharp rocks right near their new windows

[Wpg_Guy]

Originally Posted by lbnevs

yeah considering this began as a response to safety/security issues, it seems surprising that they've put an unlimited supply of small sharp rocks right near their new windows

I was thinking the exact same thing. The whole concept is Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) — what a stupid idea for creating a ‘defensible space.’

[Wpg_Guy]

City puts Osborne Village lot up for sale third time
Joyanne Pursaga
Thursday, Aug. 6, 2026


ROBERT LEE / FREE PRESS

A for-sale sign marks the long-vacant lot at 145 Osborne St. in Osborne Village.

The city is making a third attempt to sell a seemingly prime Osborne Street property, after an offer for the surface parking lot fell through earlier this year.

The 772-square-metre space at 145 Osborne St., which formerly operated as an official paid city parking lot, has been posted for sale once again.

It may puzzle some Winnipeggers to see the site in the heart of Osborne Village remain empty so long after the city declared it surplus in 2020.

However, a few different challenges may limit its appeal to potential buyers, alocal real estate agent said.

“There (are) issues in today’s market that might explain the response (or) lack of responses that they’re getting … (The property’s zone) is going to allow a wide range of commercial use, both office and retail. Our office market in Winnipeg is very soft, so it’s highly unlikely anybody’s looking to build an office building there. That’s going to leave retail. While the visibility there is very high, I think your market there is still the village, so there’s a limited market,” said Wayne Johnson, a commercial real estate agent with Royal LePage.

Johnson said some recent local developers have had a challenging time filling retail spaces. Since parking can be scarce on Osborne Street, retail businesses in that area could also be left to rely heavily on walk-up traffic, he said.

“For a developer to do retail there, there’s a fair amount of risk. The market isn’t city-wide even though it’s located (around) the centre of the city … (This) would be an excellent site for (small-scale) multi-family,” he said.

Johnson said the $1.655-million price tag — the same amount the city tried to sell the property for in January — is high.

“I’m guessing it would sell for less than that number,” he said, noting the city could just accept a lower price.

City officials received one offer after placing the property for sale earlier this year but that was withdrawn, leading it to be listed once again, said city spokesman David Driedger, in an email.

“The real estate market is competitive, and we’re optimistic that a developer will come forward who is interested in developing a mixed-use building on this property,” wrote Driedger.

In 2021, the city’s first attempt to sell the lot led to a deal with a numbered company for $1.625 million. While negotiations on that deal were still underway in 2024, it ultimately fell through in 2025.

The city has paid to remediate soil at the site, which was once occupied by a gas station. The environmental cleanup was completed in November 2024.

The delay in selling the property has not dampened general interest in the land, with people frequently asking about its future, said Zohreh Gervais, executive director of the Osborne Village BIZ.

“It’s right in the heart of Osborne Village. It’s literally at the corner of Stradbrook and Osborne … Those are really prime properties, they have a lot of foot traffic, they also have a lot of drive-by vehicle traffic,” said Gervais.

The lot is located next to the BabyBaby and Shirley’s restaurants and across the street from the Happy Cooker store.

Gervais said the space is still used informally for free parking, even though it’s no longer a formal paid lot.

“I’m not complaining about the fact we currently have an amazing free parking lot. That is not exactly a problem … but the constant limbo is a little bit strange. That would be a great spot for a parkade but it’s also a prime spot for a really wonderful commercial use building or a mixed-use building,” she said.

Coun. Evan Duncan, chairman of city council’s property and development committee, said the appetite for retail construction is low right now, though that ground-floor use would mesh well with the area.

“I think that whatever deals have been, in principle, agreed upon have fallen through, given the current climate for retail spaces. If we’re making decisions based on today’s climate, we don’t have any retail … However, if we want Osborne to be a place where people go to shop, go to eat, go to visit their favourite stores, it only makes sense to have retail on the ground level and then residential above that,” said Duncan (Charleswood-Tuxedo-Westwood).

The councillor said other options could still be considered.

“Maybe we need to think outside of the box for the sale here and look at surface parking and then residential above that,” he said.

Coun. Sherri Rollins (Fort Rouge-East Fort Garry), whose ward includes the property, said it’s disappointing the city has been unable to get the site redeveloped since 2020.

Rollins supports replacing the surface parking lot with a mixed-use development. But if the property can’t be sold this month, the city should consider other uses for the land, she said.

“I’ll wait until the August deadline goes by and then I will look at other options in the fall. If that isn’t realized, I think time’s up,” she said.

The city will accept offers for the site until Aug. 21.


A gas station once occupied the 772-square-metre space.


ROBERT LEE / FREE PRESS

The city has listed the property for a third time at $1.655 million, hoping to attract a mixed-use development after at least one earlier offer fell through.

Winnipeg Free Press

[ColdRain&Snow]

Originally Posted by ColdRain&Snow

It could also be the vacant unit between Pinky's Bakeshop and Subway that has been conditionally leased.

Update on this: It's 443 Stradbrook Ave (between Subway and Pinky's Bakeshop) that has been leased. Not sure what's going in there yet.

https://www.capitalgrp.ca/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Stradbrook-437-443.pdf

The commercial rent unit at 437 Stradbrook Ave (former Tweed) is still up for rent.

[Wpg_Guy]

South Osborne: doing it right
By: Editorial
Monday, Aug. 10, 2026


Ruth Bonneville / Free Press

Scott Tackaberry, owner of Dastardly Villain Ale Works

Every year, Time Out, which publishes listings magazines, websites and apps for 333 cities around the world, creates a list of the world’s coolest neighbourhoods.

For travellers, foodies, music geeks, theatre mavens, art connoisseurs and various other pleasure seekers, the Time Out list is essential reading, even if financial circumstances and geopolitical considerations mean they’ll never visit most of the cities listed.

Regardless, it’s fun to nod knowingly and have your taste affirmed when you happen across a district you’ve been to and enjoyed — such as Red Hook in New York City, Camberwell in London, or Montreal’s Plateau.

According to Time Out, what makes a neighbourhood cool is that “they’re places that reflect the very best of their cities — its culture, community spirit, nightlife, food and drink — all condensed in one vibey, walkable district.”

There’s no Time Out website for Winnipeg but, if there was, it’s likely that its editors and writers would have noticed the harmonic convergence of restaurants, bars, taprooms, funky stores and live music venues in this city’s South Osborne district, considered the criteria for cool neighbourhoods, and offered it up for consideration.

Stretching south to the St. Vital Bridge from the Osborne Street underpass and Osborne Station rapid transit stop, Osborne Street South is bounded on the east by Riverview and on the west by Lord Roberts, which are home to nearly 10,000 people.

For locals, Osborne is the neighbourhood’s main drag — its “high street,” as the Brits say — home to commercial necessities such as a major grocery store, gas stations and convenience stores, fast food restaurants, coffee-chain franchises and the public amenities and recreational activities offered by the Fort Rouge Leisure Centre. All are places where people can take care of day-to-day needs quickly and efficiently.

Over the past two decades, South Osborne has also become home to a bustling evening and weekend scene, as legacy businesses such as dry cleaners, tailors and appliance shops have moved on or run their course.

On any given Saturday, people can grab an artisanal coffee from a local, independent coffee shop or a frozen treat from a gourmet ice creamery and then window shop — or actually shop — as they stroll along a street of independent groceries, bakeries, a games store, a bookstore, fashion boutiques or hair and esthetics salons. At night, the area’s pubs, restaurants and live music venues serve as anchors of activity, bringing a critical mass of people to dine, see their favourite local and touring musical performers at Sidestage or the Park Theatre, or just to hang out and catch up over drinks or, in the case of Park Alleys, a few frames of bowling.

The latest buzz in the neighbourhood is that local breweries Nonsuch Brewing Co. and Good Neighbour Brewing Co. have opened storefronts on Osborne Street South in the past three months, and the former Grape & Grain home-brewing supply store will soon reopen as Dastardly Villain Ale Works, a nanobrewery (i.e., an extremely small micro-brewery) and taproom.

The local business association, South Osborne BIZ, is now thinking about adding a taproom tour to its already-popular restaurant tours, and Dastardly Villain owner Scott Tackaberry told the Free Press he hopes South Osborne “will become a little tourist strip, like Osborne Village or Little Italy on Corydon.”

Tackaberry’s in the midst of getting a business up and running, so he can be forgiven for not being quite up to speed — the truth of the matter is that South Osborne is already a happening place.

In fact, it might just be the brightest new feather in River City’s cap, joining, and maybe even superseding the likes of Osborne Village, Corydon Avenue, the Exchange District and Old St. Boniface as a cultural and entertainment hub.

Winnipeg Free Press

[Itjustdoesthatnow]

Originally Posted by ColdRain&Snow

Update on this: It's 443 Stradbrook Ave (between Subway and Pinky's Bakeshop) that has been leased. Not sure what's going in there yet.

https://www.capitalgrp.ca/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Stradbrook-437-443.pdf

The commercial rent unit at 437 Stradbrook Ave (former Tweed) is still up for rent.

It appears to be a nail salon.

[ColdRain&Snow]

Originally Posted by Itjustdoesthatnow

It appears to be a nail salon.

I think those signs are from when that storefront used to be Strada Personal Spa.

[asher__jo]

Originally Posted by trueviking

it's something else....my guess is that it is a way to get around the zoning variance required for a fence taller than 4 feet. They get their 8 foot fence by creating an artificial berm which they consider to be at grade. Feels like those loose rocks will be gone after a couple winters.

As a landscaper I’m embarrassed, this is such bad quality. And the company that did the work isn’t a small or horrible company. So they were given a shoestring budget my guess.

[ColdRain&Snow]

^It looks really bad. Like you walk past it and think "what the heck happened here."

[Mr Tall Forehead]

I think it was designed to obviously keep people out than be some sort of landscaping or design statement. The fake hill probably helped them skirt the fence height variance requirement, which no doubt would have generated negative press if such a variance request was made public. (human rights, removing a former 'public' gathering space, blah, blah, blah)

The problem with what they've done though, is that half of the rocks will disappear after the first sidewalk plow runs by this winter and they'll probably have to do some half assed fix job next spring.