Imagine a Winnipeg…2018 Alternative Municipal Budget

By Lynne Fernandez, Winnipeg cannot control broader macro pressures such as climate change or a stagnant global economy, but it can prepare for the changes that are coming. It can meet climate change with policy to mitigate damage, …

Proposed City Development Fee Long Overdue

By Paul Moist A version of this article will also be published in the Wolseley Leaf Community Newspaper Winnipeg City Council is currently considering a development fee to ensure that suburban growth in our city pays its fair …

Cities and Civic Workers: The Union Role in Building Better Cities

Book Review by Jim Silver Although Carlo Fanelli’s book Megacity Malaise: Neoliberalism, Public Services and Labour in Toronto is not about Winnipeg, it offers many insights applicable to Winnipeg and to other Canadian cities. Fanelli is a former …

Growth Charges: All Winnipeggers have a stake

First published in the Winnipeg Free Press Aug. 23, 2016 By Christina Maes Nino The issue of development fees has made headlines again as the consultant hired to take on another study of growth financing in Winnipeg, Hemson …

Communities leading the way need provincial support

By Greg MacPherson and Molly McCracken The province has invested widely in community development and “place-based” approaches to renewal and poverty reduction, with many positive results. Place-based approaches such as these are now being adopted in communities across …

Quit Stalling on Organic Waste Pickup

By the Green Action Centre Most major Canadian cities have organic waste pick up, including: Vancouver, Edmonton, Saskatoon, Hamilton and Toronto. Calgary will start in 2017. If Winnipeg does not move soon on this issue, we will be …

Uber not the answer to Winnipeg’s transport woes

By Scott Price Ride-sharing service Uber wants into the Winnipeg taxi market. Looking past the marketing facade, Uber isn’t innovative or inevitable. Uber is in fact de-regulation of the taxi industry, modernized using smart phone applications and an …

Realizing the Potential of Public Transit

Last year’s municipal election accommodated a healthy discussion on public transit. It was largely agreed that efficient, frequent and affordable transportation creates a vibrant city and is necessary if we are to take climate change seriously. An efficient …

Outsourcing Under Scrutiny

By Lynne Fernandez There has been a greater tendency for governments to outsource, and the City of Winnipeg is no exception. Outsourcing can be complex and lack transparency, particularly when public-private partnerships (P3s) are used. Under a P3, …

Municipal Budgets: You Get What You Pay For

Winnipeg’s mayoral race is now officially underway. Any serious contenders are going to have to convince a very skeptical public that they can turn around what really has been a winter of discontent with City services. Unfortunately, problems …