Winnipeg | Downtown | True North Square | U/C - Page 304

Pinus · #**6061** Posted **Jun 17, 2019, 9:30 PM**

I will just add to the engineering/consulting chatter.

My old company is out on Kenaston where AECOM is. And there is one specific reason why they decided to remain in the SW. Not because of parking. Not because of "being close to home" (most people live in the NE of the city or near St. Anne, MB.) Not because they are against being downtown.

It's simply because the sites that they work on are located mostly west and south of Winnipeg, so they want easy access in and out of the city to their sites. That's it. If all of a sudden all of their sites locate east of the city, they will move to an area like the St. Boniface Industrial Park area. It's all about easy access to their rural sites; nothing else really matters.

optimusREIM · #**6062** Posted **Jun 17, 2019, 9:36 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by bomberjet

Stantec is one relocation, yes. That's great. There are a large amount of professional companies working out there in the Terracon park, off Scurfield, Waverley areas. If they could somehow be persuaded to relocate centrally, it would be fantastic. Would also create a lot of vacancies out there.

I prefer the term "infill opportunities"

trueviking · #**6063** Posted **Jun 18, 2019, 7:19 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by roccerfeller

Wawanesa consolidating downtown gives me hope other companies may also consolidation in the future, like GWL.

GWL seems to be comfy as is and unlikely to move any time soon though, albeit spread out around several buildings downtown.

Perhaps it could restore confidence in relocation downtown? one thing at a time right.

All of Wawanesa’s office space is downtown already, so it’s not really a relocation downtown. Is it actually a good thing to empty out other downtown buildings to build new? There is going to be a lot more empty space available when they move.

It is possible that one day that Western Financial moves downtown, now owned by Wawanesa. I’ve actually heard some hint of that.

GWL is never ever moving.

As for the 80’s wawanesa building. I can’t see it being used as office space. Who would be looking for such a large amount of Class B office space that would cost a fortune to modernize? The office market is very soft. Especially for low quality space like that. There is a lot of empty space much more attractive than that. My guess is residential conversion.

bomberjet · #**6064** Posted **Jun 18, 2019, 4:00 PM**

Any updates, photos (wink wink nudge nudge) on the excavation? Looks like they're moving along nicely from what I can see.

CoryB · #**6065** Posted **Jun 18, 2019, 4:10 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by trueviking

You guys are reading way too much into a feasibility study by a church with no money, but I won't try to convince you anymore.

I have said it before, if the Archdiocese has reason to build the towers it has access to any amount of money it needs. The Catholic church is a massive global organization with what amounts to its own internal and complicated tax style funding structure.

Sure the Archdiocese of Winnipeg might not have the funds in the bank but keep in mind they are a branch office for the Vatican.

Say the global church has identified a need to expand the office of Development and Peace (Catholic NGO similar to MCC) and that Winnipeg is going to be the location for that the funds go from zero to fully funded basically overnight.

There are so many moving pieces in the organization it is hard for people to really track where they are going from the outside. Heck Gonzaga school basically hit out of seemingly no where and that is a comparatively small project for them

optimusREIM · #**6066** Posted **Jun 18, 2019, 4:20 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by CoryB

I have said it before, if the Archdiocese has reason to build the towers it has access to any amount of money it needs. The Catholic church is a massive global organization with what amounts to its own internal and complicated tax style funding structure.

Sure the Archdiocese of Winnipeg might not have the funds in the bank but keep in mind they are a branch office for the Vatican.

Say the global church has identified a need to expand the office of Development and Peace (Catholic NGO similar to MCC) and that Winnipeg is going to be the location for that the funds go from zero to fully funded basically overnight.

There are so many moving pieces in the organization it is hard for people to really track where they are going from the outside. Heck Gonzaga school basically hit out of seemingly no where and that is a comparatively small project for them

There may be a lot of money, but I doubt that a diocesan centre is going to be funded by the Vatican. In fact, I would think there's less chance of that happening than there would of the church selling out to TN at some point.

Unless there were some dire need to build this from a Catholic perspective, there is no chance the Vatican would be involved.

bomberjet · #**6067** Posted **Jun 18, 2019, 4:35 PM**

Cory you must have some sort of inside knowledge on the church's 'potential development'?? When some people whom are quite in the know say its a fantasy. The Vatican? Sorry but I find that amusing.

BREAKING: The Pope is funding a development in Winnipeg!

Not trying to be an 🞵🞵🞵, just wondering.

Winnipeg Grump · #**6068** Posted **Jun 18, 2019, 5:04 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by bomberjet

Any updates, photos (wink wink nudge nudge) on the excavation? Looks like they're moving along nicely from what I can see.

Ha!

Sorry. I got steamrolled at work so haven't posted anything. There's nothing significantly different in the last few days, just incremental work on exterior foundation walls.

bomberjet · #**6069** Posted **Jun 18, 2019, 5:05 PM**

haha Thanks Grump. Taking care of business is more important anyways.

wardlow · #**6070** Posted **Jun 18, 2019, 5:16 PM**

Haha, as titillating (in a John Birch Society newsletter sort of way) as the idea that True North Sports and Entertainment is secretly controlled by the Vatican, this isn't the case.

Yes, the Chipman family is Roman Catholic and has supported Catholic schools in Winnipeg. And yes, St. Mary's has a recent concept plan to build on their property. These two facts are not at all related.

As I recall, when the St. Mary's was shopping around their concept plan (circa early 2017), they were not very happy about the way TNS backed up against their property so closely. Obviously they didn't get the memo from the Vatican...

ediger · #**6071** Posted **Jun 18, 2019, 6:10 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by trueviking

All of Wawanesa’s office space is downtown already, so it’s not really a relocation downtown. Is it actually a good thing to empty out other downtown buildings to build new? There is going to be a lot more empty space available when they move.

One benefit I can think of is over time, it could be an opportunity to reconfigure downtown a little bit. If a bunch of offices from the outskirts of downtown were to relocate more towards the centre, the fringes could be converted to residential like you mentioned. If enough of that happens downtown could essentially be shrunk down to a more appropriate size for a city like Winnipeg.

esquire · #**6072** Posted **Jun 18, 2019, 6:14 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by ediger

One benefit I can think of is over time, it could be an opportunity to reconfigure downtown a little bit. If a bunch of offices from the outskirts of downtown were to relocate more towards the centre, the fringes could be converted to residential like you mentioned. If enough of that happens downtown could essentially be shrunk down to a more appropriate size for a city like Winnipeg.

I think Broadway is irreversibly part of downtown now, but what could happen is that Broadway could evolve from an office district into the backbone of a residential area. With the population south of Broadway, seeing a few residential conversions and new builds along Broadway itself could help attain critical mass that would encourage new businesses catering to residents to set up shop.

When I lived on Kennedy in the 00s there was very, very little on Broadway for residents. Now there are a few shops, cafes, convenience stores and restaurants. Building on that would help take Bro-🞵🞵🞵 to the next level as a downtown residential area.

ediger · #**6073** Posted **Jun 18, 2019, 6:18 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by esquire

I think Broadway is irreversibly part of downtown now, but what could happen is that Broadway could evolve from an office district into the backbone of a residential area. With the population south of Broadway, seeing a few residential conversions and new builds along Broadway itself could help attain critical mass that would encourage new businesses catering to residents to set up shop.

When I lived on Kennedy in the 00s there was very, very little on Broadway for residents. Now there are a few shops, cafes, convenience stores and restaurants. Building on that would help take Bro-🞵🞵🞵 to the next level as a downtown residential area.

I guess that's more of what I was talking about. It would still all be "downtown" but you could shift some of the commercial more towards Portage and build up the south end as more of a residential cluster.

esquire · #**6074** Posted **Jun 18, 2019, 6:22 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by ediger

I guess that's more of what I was talking about. It would still all be "downtown" but you could shift some of the commercial more towards Portage and build up the south end as more of a residential cluster.

We're on the same page. Your idea makes good sense, it's halfway to being a residential cluster as it is, and converting a few buildings could help the area reach the next level. It would be nice to have a large, visible residential area downtown that is appealing to a broad sector and doesn't necessarily rely on people having a sense of adventure the same way that the Exchange District might.