Quote:
Originally Posted by Wpg_Guy
The city has awarded the sale of the st Boniface City Hall and fire hall to Manitoba Possible (formally Society for Manitobans with Disabilities)
Their proposal includes:
Manitoba Possible intends to leave 219 Provencher as is, renovate 212 Dumoulin and construct new buildings. The proposed development will consist of 60% commercial, 34% residential and 6% retail with gross floor area 107,670 ft2, to be done in three phases:
- Phase I - Establish the foundational aspects of the development, create a new head office for Manitoba Possible on one of the surface parking lots and initiate the adaptive re-use of the Fire Hall as a community gathering place;
- Phase II - Development of the commercial and retail assembly which will house a Centre for Social Enterprise on one of the surface parking lots to create business opportunities;
- Phase III – Development of residential suites to accommodate 42 dwelling units in the northwest corner of the site, thereby completing the Abilities Village concept.
http://clkapps.winnipeg.ca/DMIS/View...8&isMobile=yes
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As someone who is related by blood to one of the people behind the project, and having seen the conceptual renderings .. all I will say is.. "You SSP nerds will looovveee this project." It will be very urban, it will protect the old city hall, it will be barrier-free / handicap friendly, it will develop new buildings over a surface parking lot, and fits totally with the character of the neighbourhood. 4 - 6 story buildings, mixed-use, with public commons.
The idea is to create a handicap friendly urban village.
I.E.) Retail, housing, bars, etc that will employ disabled Manitobans and also provide a safe place for them to live that will fit their needs.
The concept is called 'reverse inclusion' meaning that you build a place for handicapped people to live and work in that is so attractive that able-bodied people will also find it attractive to live, work, play in the same development.
The site was selected because it is in an urban neighbourhood and has excellent access to transit, something that is important to a person who can't drive.