Curry Up Indian Kitchen Coming to Kenaston Village

 

The sign is up, the restaurant is not. It is still being worked on. I was at Bulk Barn on the weekend and saw the sign and figured it was in the spot next to the old Kenaston Walk-In Clinic and it certainly looks like it. Still under construction and a few tables but strongly leaning to counter take-out service.

But what is it? Well, I looked it up and it is Indian food and Mexican food ordered like a Subway where you ask to load up how you like it at the counter. Well, if that doesn't sound like a recipe for success nothing will.

I mentioned in earlier posts that one benefit of immigration knows truly well is the international restaurants that pop up. Syrian and Afghan refugees have opened up up some delicious places all over the city.

Curry Up Indian Kitchen has a location on Regent and this will be the first location on the west side of the city. Curry Up at the location shares a space with the the family's other restaurant Goodlife Foods which is a spin-off from the original Thunder Bay location.

Curry Up Indian Kitchen Kenaston will be less dine in and more take out counter and should be open in next weeks.

Hyatt House Hotel Coming to Seasons of Tuxedo

There hasn't been too much detail but this much has been confirmed, Hyatt House Hotel will be building sometime in the near future at Seasons of Tuxedo in front of Cabela's. This land once was brought before council and was listed on the website of the developer as the future home of Lowe's Improvement.

Lowe's is now being constructed further down Kenaston near Scurfield and should be open in a number of months. It is difficult to say why Lowe's chose one site over the other. They are now the owners of Rona so that might have been the reason they held off. However, the situation will now be that Rona is across the street from there new Lowe's location. Same owner.

The new Hyatt House will be the second hotel to be built between Portage Avenue, Pembina Highway and the Perimeter Highway in five decades. The first hotel is the Hilton across the street near the Outlet Collection mall. Even now, it is near ready to swing the doors open. Construction continues apace on other stores, restaurants, care dealerships in the overall Seasons of Tuxedo area.

Hyatt House is considered an extended stay hotel which is suitable for business people who might be in Winnipeg working on projects as so often happens. It is ideal for the movie industry where you might have crew or actors put up for weeks at a time. According to specs of Hyatt House, the hotel comes with a convenience store and bar restaurant although final designs have not been presented as of yet.

The entire stretch of Sterling Lyon Parkway has gone from industrial/warehousing to retail/residential and created an entirely new neighbourhood. The absence of any hotels for the southwest quadrant of the city for decades has been a real problem. It is unlikely we have seen the last of hotel announcements for the area since the one category missing is a hotel for families visiting with the intention of shopping and visiting for leisure.

Montana's Coming to Seasons of Tuxedo

Aside from the Seasons apartments which have gone up in the last several months, it is safe to say that the Seasons of Tuxedo site has slowed down in development. Assinibone Credit Union is running and a few service based businesses are putting down roots but Red River Sports folded and their space remain vacant.

The promise of a Lowe's Home Improvement and the plans they submitted to the city remain unfulfilled. Suffice to say that it appears a lot of business is taking a wait and see attitude as development as accelerated on Winnipeg's first factory outlet mall. Housing is going up all over Sterling Lyon Parkway. Without doubt the area will have a large resident population and soon.

In the mean time, after 9 PM, things get real quiet in the parking lots of IKEA and Cabela's. The restaurants of Fat Burger and Taco Del Mar do attract people later on but the lack of a casual dining restaurant is profound. This will be now remedied by the arrival of Montana's Restaurant.

The plans for the restaurant were provided to the city this week. The size of the place will be over 5000 square feet and include a patio. There will be substantial landscaping, sidewalks and bike access to the site.

So much has changed at the corner of Sterling Lyon and Kenaston and so much more is coming. It is hard to be believe that just three years ago, it was rail land and industrial and with no people living there.

Expect the one casual dining place will attract others. It will be interesting to see if we land restaurants not presently in the Winnipeg market.

Montana's above the Fat Burger location

Defunct Video Stores of Winnipeg

Music Traders became home to Movie Village after it closed

The first video rental store in North America came in 1977 in Los Angeles when 20th Century Fox was in financial trouble. Despite the blockbuster Star Wars released in the same year, some studios were bleeding money because of older and decaying movie theatres and audiences who were turning to TV in greater numbers. To combat this at the behest of Magnetic Video, 20th Century Fox released 50 older films for the Betamax and VHS rental market.

This was not a cheap form of entertainment. In 1977, JVC introduced the first VCR for home use which included the ability to record for 2 hours. The cost was just under $1500. In today's dollars, it would be like a family spending $5500. Sony's Betamax released in 1975 was also priced in the $1500 range. The early movies available like Bridge on the River Kwai and Butch Cassidy had to ordered from a catalogue and were not inexpensive. Blank tapes were $20 or over $70 in today's dollars and movie tapes were $50 to $100 each which in today's dollars meant movies started at over $150 and up!

It is easy to see why the rental market for videos was the way to go. It was very expensive for the early adopters. I remember seeing a Betamax machine in 1979 at a friend's house. It was a huge box and worth a down payment on a home during those years. And that is no exaggeration. I recall not being impressed by the movies. None were new and I was not familiar with Hello, Dolly! or The King and I except seeing them at Rainbow Stage. Like a lot of people at the time, I longed for Star Wars.

In my house we only got cable and a colour TV a few years earlier.  Videon arrived in Winnipeg on the west side of the Red River in 1968. We had a black and white TV at the time. The screen wasn't huge but the cabinetry around it was. Cable even at $5 a month was a lot for my family so we didn't pick it up until late 1971. We only got a colour TV in 1973. It was only a year earlier that pretty much all prime TV from the U.S. was broadcast in colour.

My family would not be the first to get a VCR. However, the availability of videos and places to rent them sort of reached a critical mass around 1981. It was Christmas that year and in 1982 that many people got as a family gift, a VCR. For my family it was 1982 and for me the main reason was so I could see Star Wars which was being made available for the first time as a rental.

It was in 1981 or 1982 that the first video rental place in my neighbourhood on Academy Road near Lanark Street opened. The store was inside what used to be a sporting good store owned by present Royal Sports owners.

Video Zone on Academy Road had one wall of Beta tapes and the other wall had VHS. For some time, I believe you could even rent a Betamax to watch your rented video. Not sure when Adi's arrived on Academy Road but I thought a year or two later. Multiples of certain video stores started to arrive until there was well over a hundred and perhaps just under 200 store renting videos if you eventually included adult and 7/11 stores.

I am going to list as many of the defunct video stores by the street and cross street as I can. I am not going to remember all of them at all so will require assistance from you the trusted reader! Any details on the store will be appreciated as well. Expect this to be updated often.

Academy Road:

Video Zone: Lanark Street. Early arrival to the video rental business.
Adi's Video: Oak Street, one of a number Adi's.

Autumnwood:

Windsor Video: 1069 Autumnwood 

Britannica:

SIR Video: Later Rogers Video

Corydon Avenue:

Just New Releases: Lanark Street at Corydon Village Mall
Adi's Video: Tuxedo Village Mall

Dakota:

Bill's Home Video: At Meadowood. Now a Liqour Mart across from St. Vital Centre 

Goulet:

Goulet Viideo: 145 Goulet...now a Goodwill.

Grant Avenue:

Jumbo Video: Kenaston Village Mall which was replaced by a Rogers Video.
Rogers Video: Kenaston Village Mall across from Superstore at Grant
Blockbuster Video: Grant Park Shopping Mall
Blockbuster Video: Charleswood Shopping Mall

Henderson Highway:

Adi's Video: At Martin Street

Lakewood:

Jumbo Video: Later Blockbuster Video at 12 Lakewood
Country Video: 35 Lakewood Southdate Centre...now a Pet Valu. 


Osborne:

Movie Village: Rosyln Road. Huge selection and one of the longest lasting at that location before moving next door to Music Traders

Blockbuster Video: Wardlaw...now a Snap Fitness.

Marion:

St. Boniface Video: Beside Hair Passion 

McLeod:

Rogers Video - McLeod between Gateway and London

Meadowood:

The Video Superstore (TVS): Later best Sleep Centre
Video Den
Adi's Video
 
Portage Avenue:

Movie Gallery: Garfield Street. Now Gooch's Bike Shop

Roblin Boulevard:

Rogers Video: Charleswood Square at Dieppe Road
Pick-A-Flick: Between Sparrow and Dale...later to Forest Park Mall (Charleswood Mall)
Video Den: Sparrow and Dale strip mall after Pick-A-Flick

Springfield Road

Pick-A-Flick - Springfield and Raleigh
Blockbuster - Springfield and Henderson

St. Mary's Road

Bill's Video - Across from Tim Horton's  

Westmount:

Adi's Video: 414 Westmount 

Treehouse, Bulk Barn Locate to Old Video Stores

Rogers Video old location Kenaston Village

Blockbuster Video old location Portage Avenue

Many of the old Rogers Video and Blockbuster Video locations were picked up quickly by retailers as well as Snap Fitness.

There were a few larger locations or awkward locations that have been waiting some time to be filled.

In quick succession, two old old video store locations have found tenants.

The large Rogers Video location in Kenaston Village Mall is soon to be a location for Bulk Barn. It is sort of full circle for that space as it one held a grocery store. I believe it was a Family Fare which held its own for many years against its larger rival across the street due to a strong Sunday traffic. That end when Superstore was not allowed to open Sundays.

Eventually, once that exclusive day was gone, the store closed and a renovation and expansion put a Giselle's in place. Giselle's is gone as well from Winnipeg and what has replaced it is the First Glace Aesthetic Clinic.

The old Rogers was fairly sizable and Bulk Barn will have a roomy space appreciated by those who might want to combine their Superstore, Harvest Bread and bulk shopping.

One last note on Kenaston Village Mall is the new arrival Papa Murphy's in the old Academy Florist location. The take and bake pizza restaurant now has two locations in the city.

The old Blockbuster location in a former store on Portage Avenue near Deer Lodge Hospital is another large and somewhat awkward location. Despite having parking, the space has sat empty till now. No longer. Treehouse Furniture has moved their location on St. James Avenue in the Polo Park area to this building.

Treehouse Furniture probably will benefit from cheaper rent and to be honest, better recognition from the street.

It has taken a while but nearly everyone of the old Rogers and Blockbuster have been re-tasked and in the end, some of what has gone up instead has been quite excellent.

Seasons of Tuxedo - Kenaston Village

Assiniboine Credit Union Kenaston Village

Assiniboine Credit Union Scurfield Blvd

They were tiny and I at some point, it was expected that they would merge into a bigger location. I am referring to Assiniboine Credit Union.

It was only a few years ago that credit unions across the province started to consolidate. The banks had left them a lot of openings as they were closing branches all over. However, the credit unions needed additional strengths to capitalize and that is why merger mania took place.

Since that time, we have seen much large credit union locations merge. Now, Assiniboine has decided to take the plunge and close two of its smaller locations in south Winnipeg at Kenaston Village and in the Whyte Ridge Shopping Centre.

The location that Assinboine Credit Union wants to locate to is the Seasons of Tuxedo site. This had been reported on long ago but it is only now that we are hearing an announcement. Apparently, they were taking a wait and see approach first to see how fast the development would proceed and how successful. The new location will be 5,700 feet and once open, the other branches will close.

Seasons of Tuxedo presently is anchored by IKEA and Cabela's but Structube and River City Sports are amongst other stores are now open.

Fat Burger opens on August 8 and that will fill the last restaurant location in a building where Subway, Taco del Mar and Pita Pit.

A Shell gas station is well under construction beside the Mr. Lube at Seasons of Tuxedo. Piles are being driven in close to that site for another retail complex as almost all spots elsewhere are leased.

The site where the future Lowe's Home Improvement has not been touched. It is uncertain what the wait is about as plan approvals did go through the city.

As some businesses locate to Seasons of Tuxedo, other malls will have to figure out what to do with some of their new open space. Kenaston Village now has had the former Rogers sit empty for more than a year. They will soon loose Assiniboine Credit Union as well.

The absorption of the old Rogers and Blockbuster sites has been fairly good although some problem locations continue to plague real estate agents. Innovative thinking is probably required. For example, old movie theatres in Winnipeg were converted to retail and entertainment sites in Winnipeg. It is hard not to think that some solution is forthcoming with these expansive old video store. And if not, sub-dividing them seems to be in order.

Kenaston Village has to think about how they fit into the future.

The next wave of store announcements is coming soon. New restaurants as well

The big question for businesses is where to locate. There are now several viable options out there and for some, it is a wait and see attitude. We still don't know the impact of all the Targets just yet, especially the brand new ones. Will it affect traffic patterns dramatically? Polo Park could be even busier when the new Target is up at the stadium site.

In late summer, there may be a renewed surge of activity as businesses make the choice of where to invest.

New Stores and Restaurants

7/Eleven and Little Caesar's to be Joined by Five Guys

Original Joe's to Unicity

Five Guys Burger and Fries has built in the east of the city and the south of the city. Well, St. James...you are about to get your big burger joint for your own. Located at Rouge and Portage, it next door to D-Jay's which recently got the squeeze in its parking lot by a landlord next door. A McDonald's is almost directly across the street as well.

I think in this neck of the woods, there will be no limit to your burger choices.

My recollection is that there used to be a Japan Camera location at this corner and maybe a Presto Pizza. In the last years, Japan Camera has retreated from the market of Manitoba. Likewise, Presto Pizza might be one of the casualties of the Pizza Wars as they are no longer in the western part of the city after abandoning Charleswood and St. James.

Another new arrival to St. James is Original Joe's. They will be located in Unicity adjacent to a Domo gas station. It would appear that Original Joe's, a western based restaurant chain has found success in the old Grapes location on Kenaston and is ready to expand to Portage Avenue.

As for the menu of Original Joe's, it is a mix of burgers, chicken finger, poutine and the like. More for adults who want a drink and after work or sport social occasion. I don't know if kids are not allowed but word is that some places like this and Earl's are not the place to bring them. Heard Hooter's has high chairs though.

It really looks like the secondary stores and restaurants are close to throwing there doors open. Bouclair's is probably ready soon although their signage is not up. Last week, worst kept secret that Dollarama will be next to Ikea was revealed. They sought approval for a sign on the fascia. They will be located next to Bouclair's.

Cabela's at the back of the site very much looks like the exterior is nearly done. Completion is expected within four month.

For those concerned that HMV was going to close, they had a very successful Christmas in Canada and now looked to to rescue troubled parents HMV UK which has gone into bankruptcy. It just goes to show that people still do like DVDs, music and accessories in a store front if priced and arranged properly. One wonders what might have happened if more successful Blockbuster Canada had taken over mismanaged Blockbuster USA.

Some have made the case that there is no business model for non digital rentals or purchases. Red Box has proved there is a business model for renting. However, I think Blockbuster blew it by not putting kiosks outside their stores. And by outside, I mean right outside their doors and every other location willing to host a machine. Not everyone wants to pay a subscription fee for Netflix if they don't watch more than two movies a month.

Harvey's Restaurant fight to take over the old Chicken Delight location at Stafford and Corydon has reached an ending. Council has approved the takeover by Harvey's. Site improvements are part of the deal.

The restaurant had been on site since 1981 but the rules on drive thrus changed after it was open which prevented any others from opening. The location could be used for the same use but only if it was done within one year of closure. That deadline passed by two months.

There may have been some trickery to prevent a seller and buyer from meeting.

I don't like trickery and it appears council felt there might have been some of that happening. The deal was approved despite opposition from civil servants.

I didn't want to see a repeat of what happened across the street when a gas station closed and the old building remained there for YEARS. Nothing was developed there for a long time. More than a year empty was long enough for the Chicken Delight building.

Corydon in recent years has received a lot of pushback from residents about business on the street,. It remains to be seen if a Harvey's will be a good neighbour. I think an empty lot with decaying building is a worse neighbour.

Edit: I forgot to mention that Original Joe's is opening opposite St. Vital Shopping Centre. The Wendy's is up and running in the same area opposite the mall.

Edit: Updated on Council vote today on Harvey's.

3680 Roblin Boulevard - Kenaston Village Mall

3680 Roblin Boulevard, the old location of First Glance Aesthetic Clinic at Roblin



The small location of First Glance Aesthetic Clinic at Roblin



The old location of Giselle's is now First Glance Aesthetic Clinic

Giselle's at the Kenaston Village Mall closed over a year ago. The large space remained closed for some time. In the last year, they have seen the re-location of a plastic surgeon's clinic from 3680 Robin Boulevard.

The First Glance Aesthetic Clinic was grouped with a number medical and surgical practices in the old Charleswood area.

The old location in Charleswood was fairly small for three doctors and a host of other professional staff. The new location is a fairly posh.







The clinic has massage therapy as well although the vast majority of the services listed are cosmetic work done by specialists.

It is likely that this expansion and location on a major route close to wealthier neighbourhoods will do a lot of business. Unlike Giselle's, the clinic is probably going to have less problem with the rent increase than the day spa did.

Charleswood Shopping Centre Plaza

The Charleswood Shopping Centre Plaza is a community shopping centre on Grant Avenue. At one time, it was an enclosed mall and went by the name Forest Park Mall. It was built around 1978 by my recollection. In 2004, the owners of the mall announced that they were going to do a convert the mall to a big box strip mall. This was precipitated by fact that one of the anchors of the mall left to occupy Wal-Mart's old location at the Grant Park Shopping Mall. Zellers had not been the original department store tenant. That distinction went to Kmart which died a slow death in Canada and was bought over by Zellers in 1998. The departure of Zellers caused a re-think of what the mall should look like to ensure success in the future. The problem with enclosed community shopping centers as time went on was that many of the smaller businesses had difficulty staying economically viable. The initial attractiveness of an small enclosed mall supported by anchor stores was starting to wain. Zellers wasn't exactly the draw it used to be (if it ever was) and the mall, like so many in the suburbs, was starting to look dowdy and unappealing. For anyone driving past the Charleswood mall, it was easy to see that the place had no street presence. Aside from Safeway, McDonald's and the Zellers, no one was sure what the mall offered unless they parked and went inside. With the departure of it major anchor, it seemed the wisest choice was to turn the mall inside out. It has been a long process with renovations continuing well into the fall of 2007 and with new tenants taking a very long time to occupy the new space. In the spring of 2008, there are only three smaller units still left to lease out. The latest tenants to move in are major additions at least in terms of unique and attractive businesses to draw shoppers in the Charleswood area. One first is Sushi Park, a family owned sushi restaurant tucked in close to the Safeway. It is an attractive place with good food and an excellent addition to the area. The other new business to move in this spring is Blockbuster. For a number of years now, Charleswood has been underserved by the presence of a video store. Between Assiniboine Park and beyond the Charleswood Parkway and from the Assiniboine River to Wilkes, there hasn't been a video store of any sort for some time. While some people say that video stores are becoming less relevant with the Internet, Video on Demand, cable and satellite movie channels, there are still many people who like to rent videos and games. This can be witnessed by observing the Rogers Video store at the Kenaston Village Mall. It is filled with people; some no doubt from video store-starved Charleswood. Safeway continues to be the main anchor on the west side of the mall along with McDonald's which sits out on the corner of the lot. On the east side of the mall, the new anchor is Shoppers Drug Mart. Many of the small pharmacies have fallen due to competition from the grocery chains. Shoppers has emerged as a formidable challenger to that trend. The east corner of the mall opposite Royal School is reserved as park and ride lot for Winnipeg Transit. Beside that is a Tim Horton's to cater to the commuters travelling down Grant Avenue. A Liquor Mart and a Dollarama round out some of the larger retailers to rent space in the mall. One unique entry to the mall is City Looks Spa and Salon. The salon business has really taken off and several regional shopping centers have benefited from this type of business moving in. The 2007 revamp of Safeway has given the store a much better deli selection as well as a Starbucks. The outside of Safeway still looks boring but the inside is clean and generally an improvement. A Quiznos, a Pet Valu a Bank of Montreal branch and a local insurance office round out the services at the mall. So as the mall nears full occupancy, what is the verdict? I'd have to say as far as community malls go, it has found the right formula and the right mix of stores to appeal to its residential core and to the commuters along Grant. The mall's street appeal has improved and the selection of stores has improved. All in all, it is a welcome re-development in the Charleswood neighborhood.