Winnipeg | 2026 Civic Election & City Affairs

[cllew]

Originally Posted by thurmas

They mobilize their staff to vote quite well. To the non union member they can put people off a bit but seems not enough to change people's voting intentions

Maybe its an urban legend but I had been told a few years ago that a large number of the Fire Dept and Police Dept staff had moved beyond the city limits to the bedroom communities to escape the higher city taxes.

If that's true then them voting in a city election is less of an issue than a provincial election where they vote for the preferred provincial party.

[esquire]

Originally Posted by cllew

Maybe its an urban legend but I had been told a few years ago that a large number of the Fire Dept and Police Dept staff had moved beyond the city limits to the bedroom communities to escape the higher city taxes.

If that's true then them voting in a city election is less of an issue than a provincial election where they vote for the preferred provincial party.

Cops and firefighters are probably like any relatively well-paid group... they live out of the city in relatively greater proportions. But even then how much of a difference could they make in a provincial election considering that most of the bedroom communities are staunchly PC. What does a UFFW endorsement mean to a guy like Ron Schuler?

[wags_in_the_peg]

Murray says ground WPS helicopter and spend the $ on drones. yikes, not sure of the advanced drone tech he is referring to, but I do know many WPS who have said the copter has made a huge difference on numerous occasions

[trueviking]

i think the main advantage of endorsements from organizations like this is that they add volunteers to the campaign.

[3de14eec6a]

Originally Posted by wags_in_the_peg

Murray says ground WPS helicopter and spend the $ on drones. yikes, not sure of the advanced drone tech he is referring to, but I do know many WPS who have said the copter has made a huge difference on numerous occasions

If one copter has made a huge difference, consider how much of a difference multiple drones would make. They can be kitted out with just as good of equipment as the copter. They don't require 1 pilot for each (ie an operator could control multiple, since the software does most of the flying). They can be ready for instant takeoff from charging pads across the city. And for 2.1M$ a year (the maintenance of the copter) we could do a lot.

[Danny D Oh]

Originally Posted by cllew

Maybe its an urban legend but I had been told a few years ago that a large number of the Fire Dept and Police Dept staff had moved beyond the city limits to the bedroom communities to escape the higher city taxes.

If that's true then them voting in a city election is less of an issue than a provincial election where they vote for the preferred provincial party.

Well the endorsement influences other voters as well. Especially the WPA, they have pretty consistently used fear tactics to control civic politics here to meet their members ends even though the majority of them aren't voters in the City.

It's not an urban legend. I am friends/acquaintances with many couples who are both police or one police, one nurse etc. They make almost $250,000 per year before tax. If you think of where the $600,000-$700,000 houses are that's where those people live. There's some in the city but more in Oakbank and Oak Bluff and Headingley and East St. Paul and St. Andrews/St. Clements and Cartier.

Plus who wants to pay all the tax to fund Police, Fire and urban schools?

[Danny D Oh]

Originally Posted by esquire

Cops and firefighters are probably like any relatively well-paid group... they live out of the city in relatively greater proportions. But even then how much of a difference could they make in a provincial election considering that most of the bedroom communities are staunchly PC. What does a UFFW endorsement mean to a guy like Ron Schuler?

They influence more at the party level than the election level, much like any other union* (not conflating terms as unions are the people police hit with clubs, they have an association).

[Riverman]

Originally Posted by 3de14eec6a

If one copter has made a huge difference, consider how much of a difference multiple drones would make. They can be kitted out with just as good of equipment as the copter. They don't require 1 pilot for each (ie an operator could control multiple, since the software does most of the flying). They can be ready for instant takeoff from charging pads across the city. And for 2.1M$ a year (the maintenance of the copter) we could do a lot.

Drones are fine during the day but most crime happens at night. The Nitesun searchlight on the cop's heilo could not be installed on a drone, an IC engine is needed to provide the power needed for big searchlight. I agree, as a drone pilot that drones would be helpful but not as a replacement for the heilo.

[cllew]

Originally Posted by Riverman

Drones are fine during the day but most crime happens at night. The Nitesun searchlight on the cop's heilo could not be installed on a drone, an IC engine is needed to provide the power needed for big searchlight. I agree, as a drone pilot that drones would be helpful but as a replacement for the heilo.

As a drone pilot could you see if my assumptions of the Winnipeg restrictions for flying a drone in Winnipeg from this govt map https://nrc.canada.ca/en/drone-tool/ are correct?

As I see it most of St. James is blocked due the Richardson International airport as is a fairly large area around the Stars / HSC landing area and the Winnipeg Insect Control/St. Boniface hospital / Stars transfer landing area south of the Narin Overpass.

Helicopters can fly in and thru those areas as they are in contact with the Winnipeg air traffic control staff.

[wags_in_the_peg]

Originally Posted by cllew

As a drone pilot could you see if my assumptions of the Winnipeg restrictions for flying a drone in Winnipeg from this govt map https://nrc.canada.ca/en/drone-tool/ are correct?

As I see it most of St. James is blocked due the Richardson International airport as is a fairly large area around the Stars / HSC landing area and the Winnipeg Insect Control/St. Boniface hospital / Stars transfer landing area south of the Narin Overpass.

Helicopters can fly in and thru those areas as they are in contact with the Winnipeg air traffic control staff.

I'm all for spending $ on tech, if it will make a difference and if drones are most effective, then put $ into them.

can we not assume "police drones" would be in contact w air traffic control and therefor have access to be where they need to be and not follow same rules as personal drones?

[Highwayman]

Originally Posted by wags_in_the_peg

I'm all for spending $ on tech, if it will make a difference and if drones are most effective, then put $ into them.

can we not assume "police drones" would be in contact w air traffic control and therefor have access to be where they need to be and not follow same rules as personal drones?

Why not just have both. Use the chopper when it's needed. Use the drones when it's not. But the piddly sayings Murry will get from grounding the chopper is almost nothing. Chopper has helped alot. I remember a few years ago a high speed chase leaving Winnipeg and the chopper was able to follow that vehicle about 100kms out of the city. Show me a drone that's going to do this? Like does Murry think we are going to buy American Military Drones for the price of a novice drone lol. I don't think he's actually done the price comparison. And we still need an operator for the drone. We ll need some serious insurance as I can see one crashing down to the street below due to some idiot messing with its signal or even crashing a novice drone into it. Heck even a bird. It's not feasible yet. This isn't some sci Fi movie. This is Winnipeg. LoL we have to do things 1970:s fashion.

[Danny D Oh]

Agreed. Have the guts to make some real cuts and hold the line with the WPS budget. The issue since the Police Board came into play is there is no accountability. The Chief comes to the board and says he's going to blow the budget by 5 or 10%. They say ok we'll go get the money from council. Why is no one asking the questions of why the hell can't you manage your budget? In what other department would this be allowed year after year. The WPS and WPA control the narrative so forcefully in this city that any politician who sits on that board is immediately tainted.

The copter is useful. The only problem with it is that they didn't cut officers and vehicles that it replaces the need for. There's other capital spending they are doing that's feeding money to mafia arms operating in this city, there's far too many officers and fleet vehicles.

The amount of extreme violence in this city both random and otherwise show that stocking a police department with more and more officers and tactical equipment makes no difference to the real issues that need to be solved in our communities.

Yes a lot of these issues need attention from the Province and that will happen when the government is booted.

[thurmas]

Apparently 3 stabbed at Grant Park mall at 9pm yesterday including a 84 year old man and last week at Grant park mall a woman was car jacked and ran over at 5pm by CIBC . Also I was at Victoria hospital this morning getting bloodwork and walking up to the hospital guy was smoking crack from his shoe at the bench at 830 in the morning.

[trueviking]

isnt the main issue with the police budget pensions and union negotiations? Every mayor since thompson has tried to reduce the budget but its not possible because its a union.

[zalf]

Originally Posted by thurmas

guy was smoking crack from his shoe at the bench at 830 in the morning.

When a light roast doesn't give quite enough pep to your day.

[peg]

Originally Posted by thurmas

Apparently 3 stabbed at Grant Park mall at 9pm yesterday including a 84 year old man and last week at Grant park mall a woman was car jacked and ran over at 5pm by CIBC . Also I was at Victoria hospital this morning getting bloodwork and walking up to the hospital guy was smoking crack from his shoe at the bench at 830 in the morning.

My friend was a witness... the 84-year-old lady was stabbed while walking down the street and is in critical condition. The attacker ran to the mall and stabbed two men trying to stop him, where he was then apprehended.

The attacker is 15.


Article here

[thurmas]

Originally Posted by peg

My friend was a witness... the 84-year-old lady was stabbed while walking down the street and is in critical condition. The attacker ran to the mall and stabbed two men trying to stop him, where he was then apprehended.

Scary and unprovoked.

The attacker is 14.

City is getting worse by the day

[thurmas]

Originally Posted by trueviking

isnt the main issue with the police budget pensions and union negotiations? Every mayor since thompson has tried to reduce the budget but its not possible because its a union.

I heard 85 % of their 320 million budget is for salaries and overtime ect...so would need to lower that over time through retirements and not hiring as much in the future.

[Danny D Oh]

Originally Posted by trueviking

isnt the main issue with the police budget pensions and union negotiations? Every mayor since thompson has tried to reduce the budget but its not possible because its a union.

It's not possible because politicians are terrified of being labelled as the one who cut the police staffing complement or budget.

They aren't a union, they are an association. They are the ones who break up any union protest or picket deemed illegal.

The city certainly has no issue putting the screws to the CUPE workers, they are an actual union.

Murray is actually in a good place to aggressively pursue some structural funding changes in regard to "Public Safety" because he can't possibly have any political ambition beyond a term or two as Mayor of Winnipeg. But it will get stalled by a 🞵🞵🞵🞵🞵🞵 council that knows where it's bread will be buttered and we'll do this dance for the rest of our lives with a crumbling city physically and socially.

But coming out with the "I'll ground the helicopter" platform is so milquetoast in the context of the crisis this city is in both fiscally and in regard to social determinants when the WPS 🞵🞵🞵🞵🞵 up nearly 1/3 of every dollar in a civic budget. Not a good sign for the city budget going anywhere but to "Public Safety" along with the UFFW endorsement.

Not going to build anything with this structural problem.

[esquire]

Truly bizarre that so many people in this city can't behave like citizens in a civilized society. They need babysitters to keep them in line... according to the left only social workers and health care staff can fix the problem, according to the right only more cops can do the job.

I guess just acting like normal human beings without requiring the supervision of legions of highly paid minders is out of the question? It feels like things are breaking down.