Winnipeg | 300 Main St.- Phase II 360 Main St. | 465 Ft | 42F | Completed

[pegcityfan]

Originally Posted by Urban recluse

Based on you knowing him?

Not gonna post publicly who I know.

[Urban recluse]

Originally Posted by BigG

Has to be the comment of the week.

I'm easy, just not cheap.

[Urban recluse]

Originally Posted by pegcityfan

Not gonna post publicly who I know.

So your assertions should be believed without any form of authenticity. I see.

[cheswick]

Originally Posted by bomberjet

Exactly, they would go elsewhere. Doesn't get rid of the issue. You push them from Fort to where? Portage, Main, to someone else's doorstep.

It's like that plan Saskatchewan had to give all the rif-raf bus tickets to BC. Well hold on a second. Can't just have everyone shipping their rif-raf back and forth. Need to actually solve the issue.

Well if you're living on the streets I would think BC would be far more comfortable than SK.

[robertocarlos]

Winnipeg is a dry cold. Vancouver feels colder.

[bomberjet]

Originally Posted by cheswick

Well if you're living on the streets I would think BC would be far more comfortable than SK.

That's not the point.

[Urban recluse]

Yes, what is more important is how to get them there.

[jmt18325]

Originally Posted by robertocarlos

Winnipeg is a dry cold. Vancouver feels colder.

lol

[Wolf13]

Originally Posted by buzzg

While I don't fault Artis for wanting to clean the area around their development up at all (everyone should be allowed to do that), the argument that they'll go somewhere else isn't necessarily true either.

It's no secret that some of the issues with intoxicated people downtown seems to have gotten worse over the last few years. Lots of these places have closed at the same time. Without these places with dirt cheap rent (or ppl paying no rent to be there), many of these people would end up on homeless, or spending more time on the streets — and why would they move far from where they already are?

I'm not saying we should protect or keep these places whatsoever, I'm just saying that a) there's no one "solution" and b) we may see more "riff raff" on the streets if they have nowhere to go into.

There is no one solution, for sure. However, in the medium term (short of the wishy washy long term root causes and mental health breakthrough course), it is the most likely solution. In other cities, this is what's happened. As a downtown cleans up and populates with productive citizens, positive changes happen. It won't ever go away entirely, though.

I obviously don't know the detailed explanation of the lives entwined in the Vendome mess. There is a greater likelihood they relocate than simply go to a shelter... Nonetheless, my gut would tell me that's BETTER than the Vendome, where crime is literally always happening. A shelter may actually have help on hand. I could be wrong about shelters but that's my hunch. I know we're all super modern now but I'm not convinced that facilitating addiction is the answer, or even part of a positive path to a solution.

But that's neither here nor there.

I actually personally have felt that downtown's situation has been gradually improving. I could be wrong, however. I'm downtown every day, but only occasionally on evenings.

[buzzg]

I think there are more of all kinds of people and more businesses and activity on the streets (mostly during the day), but I'd anecdotally say there's been a big increase in at-risk people as well.

[Wolf13]

Originally Posted by buzzg

I think there are more of all kinds of people and more businesses and activity on the streets (mostly during the day), but I'd anecdotally say there's been a big increase in at-risk people as well.

Well shit. All this hope and change has been in my head.

Thanks, Obama.

[Urban recluse]

Trump would fix it.

[jmt18325]

I really would say the opposite. I see fewer at risk people than I did 5 years ago.

[GarryEllice]

Originally Posted by buzzg

I think there are more of all kinds of people and more businesses and activity on the streets (mostly during the day), but I'd anecdotally say there's been a big increase in at-risk people as well.

I would equally anecdotally say that I haven't observed such an increase in at-risk people at all.

[BKB]

Originally Posted by pegcityfan

Not true. Both their wives are sisters.

Not true.

[drew]

Originally Posted by buzzg

I think there are more of all kinds of people and more businesses and activity on the streets (mostly during the day), but I'd anecdotally say there's been a big increase in at-risk people as well.

On the holiday Monday of August long weekend, we were stuck in town, and I decided to head into work for a few hours fairly early in the morning. I walked to work as is usual - but obviously on a holiday in the summer downtown was completely quiet and dead.

The only other people besides me downtown were either homeless, or had obvious mental handicaps, or likely both (maybe I am crazy too - I'll never tell!)

I remember telling my wife that it was just me and the crazy people downtown. And it was basically true.

Not sure what this adds to the conversation, but it was such an odd feeling downtown that day. Almost like the aftermath of a zombie apocalypse.

[pegcityfan]

Originally Posted by BKB

Not true.

What are their names?

[Wolf13]

Originally Posted by Urban recluse

Trump would fix it.

Make Portage and Main great again.

Originally Posted by drew

On the holiday Monday of August long weekend, we were stuck in town, and I decided to head into work for a few hours fairly early in the morning. I walked to work as is usual - but obviously on a holiday in the summer downtown was completely quiet and dead.

The only other people besides me downtown were either homeless, or had obvious mental handicaps, or likely both (maybe I am crazy too - I'll never tell!)

I remember telling my wife that it was just me and the crazy people downtown. And it was basically true.

Not sure what this adds to the conversation, but it was such an odd feeling downtown that day. Almost like the aftermath of a zombie apocalypse.

For what it's worth, these people are everywhere.

When I was working/living in downtown Toronto I'd encounter the strangest and highest homeless people all the time... Right in downtown and by the universities. When you get up earlier and leave later than most (90+ hr work weeks suck), it's a different world. While Winnipeg has a problem overall, I'm not bent out of shape by our downtown's state. Admittedly, it's easier to tolerate it in a major city, but still; nobody is immune.

Vancouver at least has a partial solution... they all congregate on East Hastings. As downtown Vancouver became pricier, development sprawled onto these parts and through investment, policing, and improvement the homeless population has moved further east. Parts of Hastings that used to be hell on earth are now thriving. The homeless and addicted are still somewhat there and the problem hasn't been solved, but downtown has less of a problem than Toronto or Winnipeg, and keeps cleaning itself from the inside out. If homelessness isn't being solved, I'd prefer it isn't as concentrated on the parts of downtown Winnipeg that everyone is betting on.

[buzzg]

^Yeah, those issues are everywhere for sure, it's just way more obvious here because there's less of other people to bring the proportion down... especially on evenings and weekends. It doesn't really bother me too much either, and there are more people in general downtown nowadays, but I always hear from tourists how noticeable it is here compared to other cities. Obviously some women and older people feel a little uncomfortable at night still because there's no one else around.

Like you mentioned Wolf, here what makes it so obvious is that they seem to congregate in the major, busy areas, compared to Vancouver.

[Wolf13]

Originally Posted by buzzg

^Yeah, those issues are everywhere for sure, it's just way more obvious here because there's less of other people to bring the proportion down... especially on evenings and weekends. It doesn't really bother me too much either, and there are more people in general downtown nowadays, but I always hear from tourists how noticeable it is here compared to other cities. Obviously some women and older people feel a little uncomfortable at night still because there's no one else around.

Like you mentioned Wolf, here what makes it so obvious is that they seem to congregate in the major, busy areas, compared to Vancouver.

The other thing people from elsewhere forget is that Winnipeg isn't Moose Jaw. It's as if they forget we are approaching 750,000 people or so; As much as we've played up this "little big city" or "big little city" Spiel (which has to die), we're not some cozy town along the #1 en route to Cgy.