Winnipeg - Of Interest

[blueandgoldguy]

Originally Posted by Curmudgeon

You're not including Elmwood, which was part of the pre-Unicity City of Winnipeg. It had joined in 1906. There have been three in that area. Four now have happened in the suburbs, two in Fort Garry , one in St. Boniface (Windsor Park) and one in St. James. So no, it was in fact 36 of 39, now 36 of 40.

Before commenting, always be sure to check your facts. The link DOES give the stats for the cities, which in in the vast majority of cases in the U.S. are the inner cities. Very few "Unicity" forms of municipal government in the U.S., unlike in Canada. Jacksonville is the only major city that I can think of, Indianapolis to a lesser degree as it has just about half its metro population in the city. So for Chicago, the figure is for the City of Chicago, pop. 2.7 million, Atlanta for the City of Atlanta pop. 500,000, for St. Louis, the City of St. Louis pop. 300,000. The figures are not for the respective metros which have appox. 9.5, 6.0 and 2.8 million population respectively. When people think of the Twin Cities, seldom do they understand that just the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul have just about 425,000 and 310,000 population respectively. The current incarnation of Winnipeg is essentially a metropolitan area, it having as of 2016 in excess of 90% of the population of the Winnipeg CMA.

My goodness, if Chicago is up to 443 for a population of 2,700,000 that gives a rate of 16.4 per 100,000 ,which is lower than Winnipeg's 18.0! Far from "fudging", I am providing a more accurate and fair comparison.

I'm sure if you broke down that Chicago number into smaller inner city neighbourhoods, particularly the south central area, the rate would be much higher...and probably a similar or slightly higher number or people than the 200,000 in inner city Winnipeg.

Offhand, I remember my criminology professor a few decades back discussing a particular area of Chicago that was basically a no-go zone for the police, other than the occasional drug busts and sweeps which would involve dozens of police officers. Police were advised never to stop in the area if they were patrolling alone or in even in pairs. It was just too dangerous.

The professor mentioned a particular instance where a police officer had stopped in this area and gotten out of his car as he was lost. Not long after getting out of his vehicle, he was shot and killed.

This trend occurring in Winnipeg is very concerning and something really needs to be done to address the underlying issues involved that led to these situations, but it is a far cry from Chiraq where the police essentially avoid certain areas at all costs.

[LilZebra]

Originally Posted by StNorberter

BRT/LRT..... suffice to say, Katz set BRT back over a decade by cancelling a funding agreement and redirected those funds to a variety of other things including city parks and private developers.

Had the RT proceeded as originally planned, we would probable have at least 3 legs done by now and we would likely have seen most if not all of the park upgrades.

But yaay, sammy....

And you're just as wrong:


Katz was eleccted Mayor in June 2004. He immediately said that he would divert the $43 M from the Feds "earmarked" for BRT instead towards upgrading of recreation centres, and do a study on the feasibility of an LRT. He rode what is now called the Trillium Line in early November that year.


Katz set up the Rapid Transit Task Force, which reported back later in 2005. Coun. Reg Wyatt was the Chair.


September 2008, a day or so before the Press Conf. that Katz, Sellinger/Doer, Feds were going ahead with a BRT, he met with myself, Jeff Lowe, and Nick Ternette in his office and told us 3 that he'd like to have a Regional Transit Authority. No mention of a BRT announcement the next day.

That's 4 years, not 10 of "delay".

[blueandgoldguy]

Hmmmmm. Looks like Winnipeg is closing the gap with the next least desirable NHL city. Only 8 percentage points behind Buffalo. Given the comparable growth rates between the cities and downtown developments it is possible Winnipeg surpasses Buffalo in population AND NHL road trip destination...taking the mantle of second least desirable NHL city.

[Kris22]

Originally Posted by blueandgoldguy

Hmmmmm. Looks like Winnipeg is closing the gap with the next least desirable NHL city. Only 8 percentage points behind Buffalo. Given the comparable growth rates between the cities and downtown developments it is possible Winnipeg surpasses Buffalo in population AND NHL road trip destination...taking the mantle of second least desirable NHL city.

Since when is the quality of a city measured by how desirable it is to hockey players? Who cares, get over it, this conversation is painful.

[Curmudgeon]

Originally Posted by Kris22

Since when is the quality of a city measured by how desirable it is to hockey players? Who cares, get over it, this conversation is painful.

I think you'll find that it's not just hockey players. Winnipeg has a bad reputation in the rest of Canada and in the U.S. (at least amongst the ones who have heard of it) esp. the downtown area, which like it or not reflects the city as a whole. I'm a Winnipegger, and yes, I do find the area surrounding the arena very, very depressing and sketchy, really all of Portage Ave. from Main to The Bay, and that store itself now requires taking a numbing medication prior to entering. . I'm the first to argue that the reputation is not altogether deserved (hey, look at the Exchange and The Forks!), but that it exists can't be denied. Yes, life can be painful but if you want to change things you have first acknowledge the problems, and one of the main problems here is just how ugly the buildings and streetscapes are. Yet most on this forum believe in development for development's sake, regardless how hideous or incongruous it it with the surroundings or the climate.

Winnipeg's violent crime crisis made the national news tonight, so embarrassing.

[Bdog]

Originally Posted by StNorberter

BRT/LRT..... suffice to say, Katz set BRT back over a decade by cancelling a funding agreement and redirected those funds to a variety of other things including city parks and private developers.

Had the RT proceeded as originally planned, we would probable have at least 3 legs done by now and we would likely have seen most if not all of the park upgrades.

But yaay, sammy....

How do you call someone out for revisionist history and then post this?

Murray was a visionary for sure. But I don't know how anyone can seriously think that a back of the napkin sketch of his magnet bus concept was feasible for the measly amount earmarked back then. The plan was never designed, costed, or seriously considered.

[pegcityboy]

Lots of Canada is cold , dark and depressing ( I guess ) in the winter , when you go from the airport to hotel then the arena eat in or by hotel hard to make judgement about a city ! Winnipeg’s downtown has it challenges but it’s not much different than a lot of cities in the NHL if you take the weather out of it . I can name quite a few NHL cities downtowns that I’ve been to that are no better than here some worse .

[esquire]

^ When you're the smallest and coldest NHL city you're never going to outrank the likes of LA, Miami, Vegas, etc. when it comes to top places to be in January.

[Andy6]

Originally Posted by esquire

^ When you're the smallest and coldest NHL city you're never going to outrank the likes of LA, Miami, Vegas, etc. when it comes to top places to be in January.

True, but why is there such a huge gap between Winnipeg and other relatively small and cold Canadian NHL cities?

[esquire]

Originally Posted by Andy6

True, but why is there such a huge gap between Winnipeg and other relatively small and cold Canadian NHL cities?

Maybe always leaving Edmonton or Ottawa with 2 points and Winnipeg with none colored the players' perception?

(I guess that theory will be put to the test this year...)

[Andy6]

Originally Posted by esquire

Maybe always leaving Edmonton or Ottawa with 2 points and Winnipeg with none colored the players' perception?

(I guess that theory will be put to the test this year...)

Yes they may grow to enjoy their visits again!

[drew]

Originally Posted by Andy6

True, but why is there such a huge gap between Winnipeg and other relatively small and cold Canadian NHL cities?

I think it may start to improve a bit once TNS gets complete and these visitor teams are all housed within skywalk access to the arena in brand new buildings.

But the fact remains these guys visit the City at a time of year where it can certainly appear more bleak than the reality. It's cold, dark. The streets are generally more quiet with respect to pedestrians and things get grimy and dirty looking from the road sand/salt.

Overall - meh. The fact Calgary (shiny, clean, new, mountains!) still shows up on this list means that Winnipeg is always going to be a front runner. We aren't a first impression town and probably never will be. You have to warm up to this place.

[bomberjet]

They already are attached to the skywalk. Both Fairmont and Delta are. For context, the teams bus from the Delta to the arena. like a block away.. I do see players in the skywalk from time to time. usually during the day for practices. When vegas was here for the playoffs, I'd see reaves and Co walking down hargrave to/from the rink.

Who really cares what they think.

[cheswick]

Originally Posted by bomberjet

They already are attached to the skywalk. Both Fairmont and Delta are. For context, the teams bus from the Delta to the arena. like a block away.. I do see players in the skywalk from time to time. usually during the day for practices. When vegas was here for the playoffs, I'd see reaves and Co walking down hargrave to/from the rink.

Who really cares what they think.

No one should care that visitors to the city are left with a poor impression? They're here on business much like many other visitors to the city. It's not like they have some unique perspective. If the impression is poor people should definitely care.

[bomberjet]

They're here in the winter months when it's usually cold and dark. Most Winnipeggers would feel the same way. It sucks. If some millionaire living in LA says they dislike it, well of course they do.

Truth hurts I guess. Winnipeg is trying to improve conditions. But you will never stop the cold and dark.

[Curmudgeon]

Originally Posted by bomberjet

They're here in the winter months when it's usually cold and dark. Most Winnipeggers would feel the same way. It sucks. If some millionaire living in LA says they dislike it, well of course they do.

Truth hurts I guess. Winnipeg is trying to improve conditions. But you will never stop the cold and dark.

Again, it's not just hockey players, and many other (Canadian and northern U.S.) cities are nearly as cold and just as dark in the winter months. Compare downtown Minneapolis and downtown Winnipeg during winter. Minneapolis does a much better job of snow removal and sweeping, and they receive a greater amount of snow. Yes, Mpls. averages about 6°C warmer, so salt is more effective, but that is only one factor. Also, they do much better in March and April than Winnipeg, and that time of year, esp. March, is when this city looks particularly dirty, not only with grime and sand, but with an unacceptable amount of litter. So really, a minor thing that would so much improve the appearance of downtown in the winter. Hey if it means cutting back on suburban sidewalk plowing to pay for it, I'm game. On my street 80 or 90% of people shovel the sidewalk and when the plow goes by it creates more of a mess and more work not to mention the occasional damage to shrubbery and the boulevard trees, etc.

Portage Ave. will improve as the resident population increases but at the moment the perception of safety for most is deteriorating for various reasons, in particular begging which more than occasionally is intimidating, and that really has to be addressed. Rigorous by-law enforcement would be a start.

[bomberjet]

Yup. I would agree plowing the sidewalks better would be a great start. I regularly see piles of snow dumped on the sidewalk making it impassable. Then it hardens to a giant pile of ice.

[Pinus]

I was in a great mood.

Then I read this thread.

[vid]

Originally Posted by Pinus

I was in a great mood.

Then I read this thread.

It's still much more positive and intelligent than anything related to Thunder Bay, so I'll take it.

[zhan lin]

.....about the recent crime wave hike in the Peg. I predicted it happen years ago, when it began feeling that the security regime in the city coming out of hand. Our citizens started breaking laws here and there without being chased, investigated and caught and the executive power, police included let it slide paying no attention, with no new amendments, no injections of financial support to professional security organizations...Look, all those recent killings happened mostly outside of the North End, where Bear Clan successfully volunteering. Now, it dawned on the local higher-ups that it's time to walk the walk and not talk the talk...finally....I hope it's not too late.