Goldeyes Win Championship!

From Goldeyes Twitter

It has been one heck of a year for the Winnipeg Goldeyes and on Monday night in convincing fashion, they beat Wichita Wingnuts 11-4 in the last of a best of 5 series of the American Association Baseball league. Every time the Goldeyes looked like they were down for the count in the play-offs, they battled back and for only the third time, they bring back a championship.

The previous years the Goldeyes won were 1994 and 2012. Sadly, the final game this year took place in Wichita and while Winnipeg weather was fine for a game, they played under sticky 33 C weather to win it all and despite tickets being $5, there were only a few hundred people in attendance. Imagine the crowds and celebrations in Winnipeg for a hometown win. A number of fans and team front office staff made the trek now south including owner Sam Katz.

It was a team effort for the Goldeyes this year. Pitching and hitting as well as good management in signing players and managing the team roster and game to game line-up. It is never easy to win against the teams that Goldeyes have been rivals with since the 1990s.

Congratulations are in order as this looked like a team in the latter half of the season that would not be denied a long play-off run. It took to the last game but they are the 2016 champions.

The Race for Mayor of Winnipeg 2014

It is usually after the long weekend when people start to pay a little more attention to what is happening besides what they will do on the weekend cottage visit or how many Fringe plays they will attend.

Our past mayor usually didn't even announce he was running until after Labour Day.

We still have a little while for the nominations to close. Across the province, lots of incumbents remain unchallenged. In some cases not enough people are running for the positions that are available. Sad, really.

It is a difficult decision to run. Mayor and Councillor are full-time jobs. The present mayor had his business as well as a home in another country and this was a source of consternation for many including our media. No matter how high energy a person is, running a city is an all encompassing thing. Also, the matter of conflict of interest is a growing concern. The wearing of two or more hats is no easy matter. Even the perception that you are acting on behalf of someone else is enough to destroy the credibility of the process and everyone within that process.

As of last count, we have 7 people running for mayor. One dropped out, three were ruled ineligible due to problems regarding getting the 250 signatures needed to run.

I have joked around over the amount of people running for mayor and even made some teasing remarks. However, let me state quite clearly that I am happy for a competitive race. The last mayor's race had four people including an incumbent mayor. I was undecided almost till the end and voted for my candidate despite doubts. In the end, I want better governance and despite witty rejoinders and some sarcasm, I respect anyone who runs.

In the last election I voted for Judy Wasylycia-Leis (JWL). Despite misgivings that her campaign had gone off the rails a bit and increasingly relied on her NDP friends, I voted for her over Sam Katz. I deeply worried that she would not be her own woman and felt that Greg Selinger would have undue influence over her.

The NDP has tried for many years to win City Hall all the while telling us there are no party politics. Liberals, Conservatives and New Democrats have been in city office for years but it is only the NDP that seems to have an agenda of controlling the city through the provincial party.

At this point in the 2014 city election, I am once again undecided about who I will vote for mayor.

There are 7 final candidates barring any other changes. It is a lot to go through. Some people have dismissed some of the people listed already. To be sure some people in past campaigns seem to have entered in part for publicity.

At the moment, I can only assess what I can see, read, hear or otherwise find in regards to the ten mayor candidates. Some candidates have complained the media has not been covering them. I'm sure others think the media covers them unfairly.

It is not the job of the media to promote and go into depth on any particular candidate. Heck, they can endorse someone right now if they like and only cover that person till the election. The biggest threat to the media is if they are not regarded as credible so generally they will cover news stories and then add a healthy dollop of opinion. candidates should not get hung up on media coverage and try other forms of getting their message out there.

I consume a fair amount of print, radio and TV news and you soon realize that there is a variety of ways to approach news and even more varied opinion. I also read blogs, social media and often the personal or professional sites of the politicians. City Circus had one of the more extensive interviews with Judy Wasylcia-Leis.

The point is that candidates should use whatever means they can to get known, put forth a a platform and debate it whenever possible. Don't expect a free ride, understand that you might find the questions challenging, repetitive and even hostile. If you don't like dealing with the media, keep them at a distance like Stephen Harper does. It hasn't harmed him in getting his message across.

There have been a few polls out. Some say the race has already been won. Be that as it may, I am still undecided.

Let's work our way backwards from the least known candidates at this point. Some have called them fringe to whit they have bristled. Calgary elected a fringe mayor who became a beloved mayor. You could do worse. For sake of argument, I will just say least known which I think even the candidates would agree with at this point.

7. Michel Fillion

He doesn't have a website. I do follow the Twitter account. I have seen a few newspaper stories and he has promised to change perceptions of downtown and offered some ideas on what to do to provide better security. He has not been invited to a number of forums by some organizers. This is their right. If he wishes to crack that group, he will probably have to set up a website, organize his own media events, use all social media and forums he can.

What I do know of him is that he comes from a political family and that he is an entertainment booking agent. What I don't know is why he is running for mayor. I say this because many of his ideas focus on downtown. I would have thought council might have been a good start. With around 40 days to election, we'll see if some of his ideas will help elevate his status.

6. David Sanders

He has had a varied career in law,  journalism and government and rose to attention for his constant monitoring of city governance. He asked the uncomfortable questions that those representing the voters needed to ask. As an outsider, he faces an uphill climb. Sometimes it is easier to be a critic than to formulate your own ideas. That's okay. The world needs critics too. However, in a city election the voters are also looking for ideas and even a vision of how to run their community.

The job of running for mayor is one that requires organization which can be difficult. He might have made a more formidable candidate for councillor. It is possible over the course of the election that more notice will be taken of Sanders and his considerable resume. This will take ideas and challenging candidates who come to forums with empty rhetoric or outright lack of knowledge on a subject. It will be interesting to see in the days ahead,

5. Robert-Falcon Ouellette

Here is a candidate with another impressive resume and a little charisma. He probably challenges JWL on the left for the progressive vote. Some Liberals, Greens and NDP are looking at him now. I don't know that prominent NDP are going to endorse as they would likely be clubbed by the provincial party. However, nothing is stopping general members from climbing aboard.

JWL is well in the lead but RFO could eat into that support if she cannot tap into some of the vote that is looking for something a little more exciting. As it stand, RFO has been introducing some policy ideas that contrast with JWL. It will be interesting in the end to see which of the candidates has the more fleshed out campaign.

As a First Nations man, RFO is mounting a campaign that inspires even if he doesn't close the gap to striking range of the perceived front runners. One wonders if some in the city will let the issue of race dictate their vote. You would hope that like Calgary, we would look only at the person.

4. Paula Havixbeck

As a first term councillor, she was on the Executive Policy Committee but soon fell into disagreement on a host of issues with Sam Katz. This got her booted off. I didn't vote for her because I thought she would be brought into the inner circle of the mayor and things would never change. I can say I was wrong in thinking that. At first it appeared to be that way but she could no longer go along with the old way of business.

I can't say how I feel about her as councillor. I had one issue that I dealt with myself for the most part. After one term, I can't really assess how she has done since she was shunted aside by Katz. Her currency went up being a critic of the mayor but was it sufficient to make a run for mayor herself? We are still seeing policies unveiled but might be a case of too many people at center right running for office and she doesn't have as many endorsements of establishment backing.

It is difficult to break into the lead without something exciting to propel you there and the people to do it.

3. Gord Steeves

Steeves keeps bouncing back. He quit city politics, changed long time party affiliation and ran as Progressive Conservative and was smacked for it with defeat. Out of office and back into law, he indicated his interest early in the mayor's race and possibly crossed the line into violating the law on when you can announce. Had another set back when a prominent organizer and supporter ditched him. Ran into huge controversy when his wife said things that stung of racism.

And yet Steeves keep ticking. This is in part due to the fact that the front runner is on the left and is running a campaign light on actually mentioning too much. The controversies may have knocked Steeves down again but they also bolster people and supporters. It is likely a few people think his wife was bang on.

Steeves has been in politics a long time. He had a huge mandate from his ward when he was a councillor and would likely still be there if he didn't have wanderlust. It would appear that Steeves is trying for aggressive and is confronting JWL at every turn. It is a risky proposition as it can look like bullying but it has turned attention to the contrast between the candidates. Given the setbacks, Steeves has remained part of the discussion for the top 3 but he might have to wait for someone else to falter to benefit.

The people who look to Steeves are the ones who will hate rapid transit, are sick of tip toeing over which demographic scares them and makes them angry, are not fans of downtown, want roads fixed but also want their taxes low. The aggrieved suburbanites.

2. Brian Bowman

Another lawyer in the mix. This one a privacy lawyer with long time ties to the Chamber of Commerce. In short order he has picked up some top business endorsements. However, the bulk of the Progressive Conservative party and Liberal party are split among candidates. The Liberals have people in almost every camp. The NDP key supporters are by and by with JWL.

Bowman has largely tried to straddle the center right with a positive campaign. Like a lot of candidates, there is talking of finding efficiencies in the system. He remains a supporter and expander of BRT in contrast to Steeves. In fact, he has several policies that contrast him with Steeves including downtown. What he still lacks is policies that contrast him with JWL. The transparency policy could be that but he would have to show how allies of JWL such as the unions and trustees on school board don't record votes and hide facts such as raising salaries for unionized workers. Even if was a good idea, hiding it wasn't.

Depending on which poll you read, Bowman is second or third. It appears that Steeves and Bowman could do with a consolidation of the anti-JWL vote. However, neither seems likely at this stage to drop out. At this point, the movement in support is unpredictable. Stumbles can happen and momentum can build. Front runners can slip. Bowman could be well positioned to move up.

1. Judy Wasylcia-Leis

She has been the front runner since the beginning and campaigns like one. She tries not to be controversial, she makes no big vision or policy statement. In the one area of rapid transit, she says to finish it but struggled to indicate how to pay for it.

It is hard to fault her campaign. She is collecting the endorsements she needs, the union support and NDP/Liberal support she needs and just has to be the thing the is really the elephant in the room: Sam Katz.

Could Sam Katz have won again. Sure. However, it seemed obvious that some in the business community were looking for something different.

JWL still has difficulties in outlining her ideas. She can get flustered or angry. Being the only woman in the race had advantages though. She can appeal to a part of the population who want a left of center female mayor in power. Ideology and feminist movement politics are in the background. Union activity in the foreground.

I voted for JWL last election mainly because I believed that Sam Katz was increasingly running into problems related to city management. I worried that all the police and fire union endorsements could result in a lack of due diligence on budgets. It would seem much of that has borne out.

Nothing seems to have dislodge JWL from grabbing the ring of power in this upcoming election. And yet I have troubled thoughts that she might not be her own woman and that the provincial NDP and Greg Selinger will be pressuring her to kowtow. The provincial party has bulled city candidates before with Harvey Smith. I don't see them changing their tune that NDP people should do as they are told.

***

Despite my misgivings on the election, campaigns and some of the candidates, I am still undecided. There is still some time before the vote so I continue to watch with interest.

The Legacy of Sam Katz

The last laugh?

After 10 years as mayor, what is Sam Katz's legacy?

This isn't always a question that can be answered with immediacy after any leader steps down. It often has to fit it has be a lasting narrative that is repeated as fact about that person.

For example: Duff Roblin and how Winnipeg has been spared disaster time and time again because of the Red River Floodway.

Ten years from now it is doubtful that Katz will be remembered as the man who brought IKEA to Winnipeg.

The problem with that narrative is that a lot of people lay claim to that. And in the end IKEA brought IKEA to Winnipeg.

Sometimes it is the simplest things that will be remembered and they may often say more about us that it has about the person we elected. In this case, let's think about Glen Murray.

Glen Murray was the first openly gay mayor elected to a major city in North America. That's a legacy for the continent. The issue mattered little to us compared to who led the city.

In terms of legacies that a politician likes to be remembered for, it was Glen Murray who expended quite a political capital to get a downtown arena built, got the Esplanade Riel bridge and restaurant completed and was one of the champions of the Human Rights Museum. He managed to that and have a freeze on property taxes.

All of the above are legacies. Many were not recognized as such when they were undertaken. It took time to realize some of the significance of these projects. Some, in the case of the Human Rights Museum, we still don't know what the end story is.

So, if we keep things simple at first, what is the legacy of Sam Katz? Well, he is the first Jewish mayor elected in Winnipeg. This is a big deal insofar as we have had Jewish leaders routinely rejected by the electorate for higher office at various levels.

Winnipeg has grown up. We have made firsts in electing a woman, a gay man and a Jewish man mayor of the city of Winnipeg. Collectively, we have said these are not the issues that will stop me from voting for this person.

Now what of the legacy of achievements of Sam Katz? To be sure, those things are still in flux. He can certainly claim as much as Glen Murray a hand in getting the Human Rights Museum completed. However, we don't know what the citizens of the city will feel about the project for some time to come.

Property taxes were frozen...till they weren't.

Business tax was cut and this is a concrete legacy and something he pushed for.

Katz was also the force behind ending city garbage service. Costs are down but the is still a developing story of service, efficiency and conservation.

After this, things get a little fuzzy. We have a number of fire halls and police headquarters built but the good legacy of investment there is tangled in with the overcosts, cronyism and lost trust of business and the electorate.

The praise from Alex Forest of the fire union stating that the mayor did right by the fire fighters and paramedics and they don't know what all the fuss is about is a bit rich. Let's just say that a fire all built on private land a swaps of city property by a fire chief is not way to run city hall.

How things get done is equal to getting them done.

This is the immediate aftermath of the legacy of Sam Katz.

Some other projects that Sam Katz was involved in might have a more lasting and appreciated recognition in years to come. The turnaround of Central Park came from a lot of people but Katz was there to help usher it in. He also was there to help with the new fieldhouse for the University of Winnipeg.

After many decades, the first leg of rapid transit was constructed under Katz's watch. Even now, we don't know if it was in spite of him or not. We don't yet know how Winnipeg feels about it all and won't know for years to come.

The legacy of Sam Katz is still being written. Let's see how it turns out.

Predictions for 2014 in Winnipeg Part 2

In politics, we have one main election happening this year barring any snap elections of the provincial and federal levels.

The civic elections happens in October of 2014. A number of people have indicated interest. Many of those people will pull out when the realities of resigning from their positions on council to run for mayor look decidedly poor.

Having said that, I predict:

* Dogfights for two open city council seats in St. James and St. Boniface with a possibility of at least two more in places like Tuxedo and River Heights.

* Mayor Katz will announce at the very last minute that he won't be running in the upcoming election and will cite family and business as the reason plus achieving all his goals. 2014 will be a repeat of the previous years of questions regarding financial management.

* The stepping down of the mayor will cause the next mayoral vote to be one of the largest slate of candidates in Winnipeg history. The next mayor of Winnipeg will be Jeff Browaty who will land the endorsement of other councillors who chose not to run. Browaty will count on Conservative voters but will reach out to Liberals to undercut and divide center and left of center voters.

* On the provincial side of things, the provincial NDP will mount an advertising campaign using government moment for every department in an attempt to turnaround poor polling numbers. Toward the end of the year, Greg Selinger will announce that after 25 years of politics, he is stepping down and that a leadership campaign will replace him ahead of a provincial election in 2015. Sometime after the provincial election, Selinger will return to the University of Manitoba as professor.

* Christine Melnick will announce she is not running for the provincial NDP in the next election. She will be joined by a few more from her party as well. 

* In 2014, Vic Toews will become President of the University of Winnipeg.

* On the federal level, James Bezan will announce he is not running for the federal Conservative after 10 years in office for Selkirk-Interlake. He will be joined by Joy Smith who will also have served 10 years as MP for the Tories for Kildonan-St.Paul. Steven Fletcher will be challenged for the nomination in Charleswood-St.James-Assiniboia.

The Outcome of the Katz Trial

Chan versus Katz Global News

On April 2, the deliberations of Queen's Bench Judge Brenda Keyser came down in Chan versus Katz in the case conflict of interest in regards to a 2010 Christmas party paid with taxpayer money at a restaurant owned by the mayor.

The judge decided that the Manitoba Municipal Conflict of Interest law was not intended to cover such things as a Christmas party. Her reason for such decision was also coloured by the "utterly disproportionate" mandatory penalty if she did make a finding of conflict of interest.

What the judge did find was "bad political and ethical behaviour" but when applied to the provincial law (which she read very narrowly), it did not constitute what she discerned the law's intent was.

In layman's terms, the law was vague, the penalty disproportionate and the judge was not going to remove an elected official based on the evidence presented.

For Joe Chan, the repercussions in terms of all this is going to be $10,000 to cover costs. It is hard not to think of this a punishment directed at Chan and people like Harvey Smith and other NDP/progressive types for trying to do an end run to achieve what they could not get done in past elections.

For a long time the NDP and certain labour groups have targeted Katz and have run NDP supported slates. It has been almost a complete failure for decades.

To a great extent the failure of this conflict of interest challenge lies completely with the provincial NDP. It is the law they set up that received the harshest treatment at the hands of the judge. She basically said that she would not have found guilt because of the disproportionate nature of the penalty.

Greg Selinger needs to fix the legislation. The judicial system has stated plainly they won't do the dirty work with mandatory and one option only penalties. The law needs to be clearer about what constitutes a conflict and the punishments have to be scaled accordingly.

Lest anyone think that Sam Katz is totally innocent of this, lets go back to the words that describe the mayors actions. The judge found that Katz used bad political and ethical judgement in taking city elected and unelected officials to a Christmas dinner at a restaurant that he owned. The Winnipeg Sun editorial didn't mention this. They said the lesson for Katz to learn from this was to ignore the critics. Presumably they meant the judge as well in their comment?

No doubt there are Katz haters out there. A mayor is going to be a lightening rod for criticism. However, over and over are issues related to private and public matters and governance that keep tripping up officials.

Even for Katz supporters there has to be disappointment that there is not more pointed debate to keep elected officials feet to the fire. The system is gamed to prevent opposition from taking root. Step out of line and have your top committee status revoked by the mayor. This leaves many councillors on the outside looking in on a lot of decison-making with no strong tools to mount an opposing view.

It is important to remember the system in place now is exactly what Greg Selinger and the NDP government want. They would rather continue the present system rather than risk it knocking them from provincial office. And that is a very real risk. In 1988, the provincial NDP saw provincial Liberals use municipal politics to crush them in the election. The rule allowing city elected officials to run for provincial office was closed to prevent this from ever happening again.

It suits the NDP to leave things be. It remains to be seen whether the Progressive Conservatives or Liberals will be interested in democratic reform in this area.

The suggested reforms should be:

* A completely retooled Municipal Conflict of Interest Act. A judge has said she doesn't like it and she did a work around. The law needs to be clear. It needs to have scale. It needs to be fair.

* Manitoba needs an Integrity Commissioner. Such a person would be responsible for lobbyist registration, expenses review, ethical conduct and for public disclosure of wrongdoing.

At the moment, only the court of public opinion seems to be governing certain behaviour in government offices. And by the routine way we see elected officials act, one might presume they think there are no repercussions.

That must change if there is any hope for better governance.

Sam Katz Denies Run for Mayor of Scottsdale - a satire

Sam Katz News Conference

At a hastily called new conference, Sam Katz denied reports that he had attended a meeting in Scottsdale over the Easter weekend to explore a run for the mayor's job in 2014. The problem is that it wasn't for the city of Winnipeg but for the city of Scottsdale, Arizona.

Canadian Press learned over the weekend that Katz was in high level talks with senior people of the Arizona Democratic Party and produced documents stating he had American citizenship as well as resident in the state, specifically Scottsdale. In the year 2012, CBC News revealed that Katz was the owner of a $1 million house in the tony community of Scottsdale just outside of Phoenix.

In recent weeks Mayor Katz has hinted at running ahead for the mayor's job in Winnipeg, a position he has held since 2004. However, in recent weeks unnamed sources south of the border indicated that a committee of state Democrats in Arizona were looking to recruit Katz to run for office south of the border.

Until this Easter weekend, it wasn't known that Sam Katz had obtained American citizenship in 2011 and had lived in Scottsdale enough days in 2012 to have it qualify as his primary residence. Insiders who attended the meeting say the presentation of documents satisfied their concerns prior to a fundraising effort that was to begin in June of this year.

The mayor was asked about his weekend meeting at the Winnipeg airport this morning by Canadian Press but said he was not available for comments. By late afternoon, news media had gathered outside his office to await his official comment. Eventually, Katz scrummed in an unscheduled news conference.

"It's inaccurate," Katz revealed when asked if has was running for mayor of Scottsdale. "I attend meetings all the time." He refused to answer if the meeting in Arizona was in regards to elected office there.

When asked about the report that he held dual Canadian and American residence, Katz said this: "It is a private matter and has nothing to do with my office."

"I intend to do my job as Mayor of Winnipeg," Katz said before leaving the scrum with more questions than answers.

The Trial of Sam Katz

BORIS MINKEVICH / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS

The Free Press picture featuring Harvey Smith's banner regarding the trial of Sam Katz and Joe Chan probably speaks volumes about the relationship between the councillor and the mayor.

The trial involves allegations of conflict of interest by the mayor regarding a taxpayer funded Christmas dinner in December of 2010 that was held in Hu's on Ellice, a restaurant owned by Sam Katz.

Joe Chan, a restauranteur who owns Cathay House, inquired how the contract was won since he was not aware of a tender. As it turns, there was no tender and a decision was made somewhere within the mayor's office.

The laws on conflict of interest law detailed in Manitoba's Municipal Conflict of Interest Act are where potential problems may lie for Sam Katz. If the law has been in fact broken, the mayor may be told to vacate his elected office.

We have seen in Toronto an example of conflict being brought to court in terms of Mayor Rob Ford and his charity. It was decided there that the mayor was indeed in conflict and told to vacate his office. Ford appealed and won in Superior Court and retained his seat as mayor.

The circumstances of the case in Winnipeg as well the legislation could differ in enough ways that anything could happen. One suspects though that if a decision is made that conflict did happen and a vacate order was issued that an appeal would occur.

The mayor's lawyer Robert Tapper has come out hitting hard against Joe Chan accusing him of breaching confidentiality from a settlement and suggests they will go after him for money. The mayor called the claims made by Chan baseless.

It seems likely that Sam Katz could have avoided all this mess if it was possible to separate his business from city affairs. The first promise the mayor broke was putting his private business into a blind trust so as to not run into conflict. This action and others would have ensured the mayor didn't run into accusations of mixing the two areas.

The mayor of New York, Michael Bloomberg, put his business in a blind trust to avoid any hint of conflict of interest and it appears to have worked for him. In Canada, the example was set by Paul Martin Jr. when he was prime minister. His substantial business interests were in a blind trust as well.

There is nothing wrong with a politician being a business owner. Politics does not last forever. However, it is no joke that conflict between city business and personal business needs be dealt with.

Sam Katz could lose his job over this. Sadly, he doesn't seem to be ensuring that it is not possible for it to happen again. The maxim of "trust me" has been thoroughly undermined by some eyebrow raising activities that make people wonder aloud if there needs to be more solid dividing lines between business and city.

Ultimately, the mayor has only himself to blame for landing in court this Tuesday. It is not an easy thing to let the law have to decide this. Even if a decision goes the mayor's way, the feeling amongst the public might be that Katz might have too much going on to fully focus on his good office.

There are 3 or 4 city councillors itching to run for mayor. If Katz is told by the judge to step down, expect the most competitive race in years for the job.

Paula Havixbeck

Paula Havixbeck

There has been a lot of cheering for Paula Havixbeck in the last while after her stand on the city budget. Sam Katz gave her the heave ho and suggested she was difficult to work with and the reason she was off the Executive Policy Committee was because she changed her mind on issues that she had previously convinced her colleagues on.

It was suggested Justin Swandel left EPC because he wanted to chew his own arm off rather than be in the same room with the councillor from Charleswood-Tuxedo. In the last few years, Swandel has been a tad tetchy and has not suffered critics lightly. He probably hates Havixbeck more than any other city elected official there is.

The thing he doesn't like about Havixbeck is she has questioned the way council does things. She resigned from the police chief selection committee when it was revealed that Phil Sheegl alone would make the choice. It was likely that alone made her a source for scorn from Katz and Swandel.

Swandel does not like doing laundry in public. He has said it is not the way things are done.

The problem as we have seen is that these behind closed doors decisions can come back to haunt you. The fire hall issue struck many people as side stepping oversight, consultation and an actual vote. It was presented as a "done deal."

City Circus showed a speech by Havixbeck and it wasn't of an unhinged and hysterical woman as Katz and his insiders might have wanted to portray. The sad fact is that we had a tax increase at the same time the council was choosing to have their budgets increased. Special funds for council and the mayor to spend as they wish seem more attuned to getting re-elected than meeting budget responsibility.

There is room for policy and staff support for council. They need support in terms of keeping aprrised of what is happening in the city. The administation running roughshod over elected officials will deepen if councillors don't have the right information and policy options. The problem is an increase in budget to fund pet projects is left in place making the whole thing unpalateable.

Havixbeck has pointed this out among other things. And she has gotten turfed.

I did not vote for Paula Havixbeck. I felt she was too connected to the Progressive Conservatives and was too much the choice of Katz and supporters. They must have felt the same since when she was elected, she was escorted to the big table that other councillors can only dream of. And now she stands on the outside.

My one dealing with Paula Havixbeck was in regard to sub-standard asphalt on Sterling Lyon Drive in front of the new IKEA. Like many drivers, I felt it was not a good job and I called the councillor to take a look for herself. I got a hold of her assistant.

The response after that was a curious one. I received a call from 311 giving me the contact number for the contractor. I thought: what?

Still, not ones to let it rest, I called the contractor and was told they felt the asphalt was good as it was. I asked if an inspector had looked at it. The contractor said no but that in the new year (as it was getting too cold to do any continued road work), work would resume in and around the area. I was told they would look into the matter then and that an inspector would sign off on the work. I said I didn't think the work would pass muster and in the end, it didn't.

The asphalt along Sterling Lyon was scraped down and re-done.

I can't say my Councillor helped in this matter.  And I was surprised my number was handed to 311 when I didn't call them.

In the end, I acted myself and to the contractor's credit, they re-did the work.

Now, this was early on in Havixbeck's term. I realize there is a learning curve but I was disappointed.

In the last while, there has been a small rallying cry for her to challenge the mayor (if he runs) in the next election. I'd welcome more Councillors throwing their hat in the ring. Most won't if the mayor runs again because the patent unfairness of them having to resign their Council seats while the mayor retains his.

I can't say if Havixbeck is ready. The reason I didn't vote for her aside from her close ties to the PCs was that she had less of a defined policy platform than her competitors. An equally run campaign for mayor won't likely sway me.

For the moment, I will stand up and cheer a more outspoken counterpoint to what we have seen in City Hall the last little while. Things need to be better and it won't happen if Councillors keep getting blindsided by a lack of information.

Let's hope this promises to be an interesting year in city politics.

Zombies Attack Winnipeg

Zombie Attack Started on Mountain Avenue, October 31, 2012... recovered footage

These reports were culled from tweets, emails, blogs and other online stories. Much of the mass media missed the earlier story as they were covering the IKEA opening across town.

* Tweet: Wow, just saw the police tape go up near Mom and Dad's Grocery on Mountain. Either that is blood all over or they had a sale on ketchup! #JustTypicalWinnipeg

* Tweet: I saw at least five or six bodies there. Cops all over the place! Ambulances took away a few of the injured.  This would never happen in Tuxedo. #WinnipegMurderCity

* Text: Mom, trapped in car on Main. Traffic backed up. Near Mountain and crime scene. Ick, get me out of here!

* Email:  I know you said the area would become the new Osborne but I don't remember the village having so many people aimlessly walking the streets.

* Tweet: Still trapped in traffic on Main. Going to miss IKEA opening. :( WTF, some guy on stretcher attacking cops!

* Blog: North End True Crime The police only got involved this morning with the attack on Main but as I reported a few days ago, there has been strange goings on in the neighbourhood all week. Every night from my basement window I see people shambling about and moaning. I know I have seen people lying out there in the night but in the morning they are gone! Thank goodness I have bars on the window. Every night someone has tried to get in.

* Tweet: A mob is attacking the police! Stuck in traffic on Main! #WinnipegRiot #StuckTrafficWinnipeg

* Email: I am hiding in a hospital clerk's office. It started this morning but it probably went on for some time before we knew about it. The ambulances from last night had to wait in the bays for hours to discharge their patients. We don't triage bite patients till more serious emerg people are dealt with first. When our security guard did open up the doors a flood of people rushed the door including paramedics! It was a mob attack! I still hear screaming far off. I don't dare open the door. I called the police but all I get is a fast busy signal. I called virology too because this looks like a blood borne infection. But what could do something like this?

* Blog: Politics in Winnipeg It is a full scale disaster in Winnipeg and the Mayor Sam Katz is at his home in Arizona. The Emergency Response Centre is being commanded by the only Councillor who could make it is: Jenny Gerbasi. She gave this surprising announcement: Shoot for the head! Some commentary I saw in tweets says she has alienated many of her NDP colleagues with her violent outburst. NDP activists have sent a humanitarian team to what is being called an "infected area."

* Tweet: Trapped in schoolbus surrounded by dead people. #SchoolSucks

* Blog: True North End Crime: It would appear that the NDP delegation was eaten.

* Tweet: You heard it here first. These are zombies. I am with Gerbasi: Shoot for the Head! #ShootForHead

* Email: We are using garbage containers as barricades! Since they have not been picked up for days, the garbage makes us smell like the dead.

* Blog: Politics in Winnipeg: Greg Selinger and the NDP issue news release that they won't interfere in what is a city matter. Selinger departed thereafter for a trade trip to Outer Mongolia.

* Tweet: The only safe place is downtown since no people are there! #Doughnut City

* Email: It looks like a herd of zombies is moving south. Could they be headed south for the winter?

 * Tweet: Trying to escape on rapid transit but we're all stuck here at Confusion Corner. #ConfusionCorner

* Blog: University Stud: I wasn't aware of the zombie attacks and quite frankly, I don't care. I'm not interested in politics.

* Tweet: The zombies are in Osborne Village! But first must get tights at American Apparel.

* Blog: In the Village: It appears the zombies have attacked the Osborne Inn and the fetish ball! Ooo, fishnet zombies.

* Tweet: Just saw Jenny Gerbasi atop a patrol car. Wow, she can really shoot. #ShootForHead

* Tweet: Zombies spotted in Polo Park! Trapped in Zellers! Wow, nice liquidation sale.

* Blog: Southie: It appears Jon Gerrard has the best approach to this zombie problem but can't a seconder in the Legislature. Plus, media attention is all on IKEA opening.

* Email: The zombies have crossed into southern and western Winnipeg. After some initial confusion about how to navigate the swirly streets of St. James, the zombie just headed down Portage Avenue and overwhelmed the evacuees as they tried to get on the Perimeter Highway.

* Tweet: Zombies speeding through River Heights. The traffic circles are jammed with cars and bikes!

* Blog; Southie: The reporters have their backs turned away from the zombies as they cover the IKEA opening. They are eating the reporters! Oh, the humanity.

*****

Shortly after this phone and Internet was cut off from Winnipeg.

Should Sam Katz Resign?

It has been a tough number of weeks for Mayor Sam Katz.

He has always had his supporters as well as detractors. However, he has always been able to shrug his shoulders, smile and dismiss concerns about his tenure as mayor when criticism arose. Many people liked the fact that he was owner of the Winnipeg Goldeyes and a businessman and figured he would know how to run a city.

Although the tax freeze started under Glen Murray, Sam Katz continued them until just very recently. To keep this property tax freeze, the city used every penny from parking fees, fines, service and utility charges and any other area where they could divert money. The result from the freeze was a decay in infrastructure and a massive contracting out.

The anger about the decay but resistance to tax increases has resulted in the use of public private partnerships. They have built city bridges and other projects all over the city. They have become so common place that the provincial government wants to analyse them and maybe regulate them more.

This would not be the first jurisdiction to do so. P3s can be extremely complicated and not always be the best use of taxpayer money. The accusation is that they are corporate driven. This has to be taken into consideration when looking at infrastructure replacement. Whose needs are we serving has to be asked? And how much savings or removal from risk is involved in letting the private sector take the lead?

In some cases, P3s have run into financial ruin and cost the taxpayer lots, sometimes for long term. And sadly, the city officials who put these deals are often out of office or retired.

We had an investigation into politics and development only twelve years ago during the early tenure of Glen Murray conducted by former auditor Shannon Hunt. The issues then were political interference and favouritism which the 18 month investigation said cost the city millions. The mayor, the council and bureaucracy were named as being complicit and all promised to do better.

The conclusion from the report was the city had to restore confidence as a good place to do business. In other words, consistent, transparent, clear rules, set objectives, good tendering processes, regular audits and the like to help maintain and develop the city at the same time.

So after 12 years, where are we? It would appear to be that we are in a bigger quagmire than we were with the last administration.

So where did it start? It started with no clear rules and enforcement for city officials about disclosure, conflict of interest or where private business begins and ends. One of the first promises Sam Katz made when running for office was that he would put his business in a blind trust. After winning office, he re-evaluated this, found out that there was no legal restraints on him and this became the first promise he broke as mayor.

The public certainly didn't find it concerning enough and the mayor was re-elected twice after. However, we only have gotten a glimpse of the business the mayor does outside his civic duties due to the fact that some of it is never disclosed or it requires freedom of information requests.

And so it is with the lawsuit that one restaurateur has undertaken against the mayor over his hospitality spending. It is only now, years later, that we see how much spending has taken place in businesses the mayor owns or his family owns. This will be for the court to decide in terms of whether it violates the provincial Municipal Council Conflict of Interest Act.

In the end, it isn't meals out that will cost taxpayers a pretty penny but real estate and infrastructure deals that the city is doing. And to this end, the mayor's business relations are now starting to bare examination. He has continued to run the Goldeyes operation and for many years was president of Riverside Management which managed a city owned parking lot near Shaw Park. It was there that  the mayor has had and continues to have issues related to conflict of interest.

The city owned land near the baseball stadium will be the last component filled in the area surrounding The Forks. However, since the disposition of the site could have an economic impact on the Goldeyes, the mayor cannot be part of the decision making process regarding it. It is a fact that often has to re-stated over and over.

As owners of the Goldeyes, Katz has a relationship with the Sandy and Robert Shindleman who are directors and co-owners of the team. Katz has downplayed the relationship and said he knows them well enough to say hi at the stadium. This seems unlikely for co-owners of a team. It is like saying the Chipmans and Thomsons of the Winnipeg Jets are not on a first name basis.

The house that Katz bought a house in Arizona from sister of Shindico executive Diane Shindlman, is an indication that the mayor has more than a passing relationship with the family.

Real estate assets outside Manitoba are not included in the disclosure rules. The problem is that we have a mayor who lives in Scottsdale a good deal of the year to be close to family. He regularly is down there and regularly does business. This was the impetus for buying a shell company from his chief administrator Phil Sheegl. The shell company, which costs thousands of dollars to set up was sold for a buck to the mayor so he can conduct real estate deals down in the U.S.

The fact that Katz did not reveal the deal until the CBC found out about it speaks to the gap in the conflict of interest coverage. The mayor should have known better as the legislation indicates the elected official should reveal any potential area of concern.

There is no doubt the mayor has been concerned that it might be a liability if it was well known that he was down in Arizona many weekends and was homeowner there. He has bought and sold many properties in the south, some with with his chief administrator.

Brian Kelcey, a former advisor in the mayor's office, has said that because the mayor thinks that it is no one's business if he buys a house from someone in another country linked to one of Winnipeg's most prominent real estate businesses, he should resign. The Canadian Taxpayer's Federation says more should be revealed about Katz's Arizona business dealings.

And round, round it goes. The mayor shrugs but it is increasingly looking like Katz is growing uncomfortable answering questions about his business.

In the end, there was no ignoring the siren call for an audit about real estate and development deals that was voted on last week.

The Shindleman's primary business is real estate through Shindico. They are good at what they do and as a result are at city hall regularly for business.

They're also aggressively involved with city infrastructure whether it is buying, selling or developing properties. The latest is the Westport Festival development beside Assiniboia Downs.

The mayor usually votes where Shindico is involved despite his business relationship citing no conflict with their present developments.

We've had mayors who were business owners in the past. Susan Thompson owned Birt Saddlery for three years into her term as mayor. However, it is safe to say that we have not had a mayor with as many disparate business interests since the city was young.

Sam Katz has bought and sold many properties, continues to work as a promoter with such events as the Wedding Show and Baby Show.  He still does concert promotion via travelling musicals, owns the Goldeyes and has owned restaurants.

By Katz's own admission he has been fortunate. He also made a decision not to put his business in a blind trust. By contrast, the 10th richest man in the U.S. Michael Bloomberg, mayor of New York City placed his business in a blind trust. This was done to protect him and the company from running into conflict of interest accusations or the hint of favourtism. For the most it has worked and Bloomberg has been a fairly successful mayor as a result.

The increase in private participation in city business such as bridges, police stations and fire halls has plainly demonstrated just how much need there is of consistency, fairness, transparency and proper financial analysis. No matter how you look at it, the construction of a fire hall on land the city doesn't own is bad. It is worse that the deal seemed to include a land transfer that council was unaware of until the new fire hall was built.

The Number 12 fire hall might have been the trigger for the audit but ultimately an outside investigation may result in a terrible fall out if it appears that bad deals have been made, favourtism granted or interference been involved.

Should Sam Katz resign? No.

But if he wishes to remain mayor, he should put his business in a blind trust and disclose everything he owns even if it is outside the province. He should set an example beyond what the legislation outlines now. This is no longer just an issue of personal privacy but a question of where Sam Katz's business crosses into city business.

Will the mayor do this? It remains to be seen. It may be that his hand might be forced by changes to provincial legislation.

Jenny Gerbasi and Phil Sheegl - Worst Death Scene Ever

Jenny Gerbasi in blonde wig put it to Phil Sheegl in Council Meeting yesterday.

We'll go back a year... no wait...five years! Audit!! Aaaaarrrrrggghhh!! Right though the heart!!

Fire Hall Redux

The 1780 Taylor Fire Hall - Free Press

City officials who rushed to assure the deal for the fire hall land swap was all above board still can't seem to get their heads around the fact that elected officials still had to approve of the sale. It has been 10 days of confusion, very little or no paper trail, uninformed senior officials and councillors and millions of dollars of spending.

The request that we all go back to sleep and that this is a "wonderful" story defies belief. The lack of information and scrambling over the last several days suggests that things were not as clear as they could have been and protocols were not exactly followed.

It is no wonder some city councillors seem particularly upset. Some land such as Mulvey has been repeatedly been mentioned as not available. It is is amazing that it suddenly becomes available at the last minute.

Is there any wonder why there is suspicion on the disposal of the golf courses? The city is likely to indicate a property has been sold to a developer without ever putting it on the market.

Sam Katz acts upset one moment and then his administration the next moment says everything is going as it is supposed to.

The question I keep asking myself, why was the fire hall built on Taylor before the land was acquired? It seems to me that this should have been settled first. It isn't city owned land yet there stands a city building. Is it no wonder that Shindico put up a rental notice on property they thought they had acquired?

It is difficult not to see this as creating confusion and possibly resentment in investors and taxpayers. No one knows if there is proper value in the deals. No one knows if they need not apply since only insiders get the deals. It is all around bad.

How did we get to this point? It is the mayor? Is it the administration? Is it the council? It is the province who created the system we have now. Are they to blame?

In truth, it is all those things. But it is the people of the city as well. The low voter turn-out, the disinterest in the process or helpless response to it and the general apathy contribute to why the city is the way it is.

I am not saying anything that hasn't been said before. And calling voters out rarely works.

Something has to change though as this free wheeling could end up doing real damage to the city.

Let's see what happens next city council meeting. At the moment, it is in city councillor's hands. And some don't seem happy that they were in the dark. Some have gotten a little angry in fact.

We have not heard the last of thing. The question is: Will it change what is happening?

The Number 12 Fire Hall on Grosvenor in River Heights

The CBC reported last week that Shindico had placed an ad on their website indicating they were leasing the Number 12 Fire Hall. The ad had floor plans and interior pictures indicating exclusive access for the real estate company.

Keep in mind that the property and other empty fire halls had received no public notice indicating their sale and dispersal.

I was aware that a swap of property was under way months ago but city officials assured me that a deal had not been reached. I did not know who was the primary in the swap just that someone had given up a chunk of property for a new fire hall and was asking for a cash and land deal. In hindsight, I ought to have guessed it was Shindico since they owned the land where the new Taylor Avenue fire hall sits.

In principle, I am not against land transfers but it does strike me that it is hard to say what the market would pay for a property if it is never offered. City Councillor John Orlikow was told that the land was not declared surplus. The councillor's office had referred me to city officials several weeks ago where I was told that they were in negotiations for a land transfer. I am not sure how the councillor was caught flat footed and not know it was being disposed of.

And apparently, there is more than one fire hall being negotiated for. The list also includes the stations at Mulvey and Berry Street.

CBC reports this deal has been two years in the making. The 55 year old fire hall has been in play since then but no official settlement has been reached. The head of the property department says the land should not have been advertised as yet and indicated that Shindico was being "aggressive." However, the city official did indicate that the properties had been declared surplus in a council meeting.

John Orlikow says there is a process and indeed he is correct. A vote awaits on final sale or transfer of the property. However, he did seem shocked or didn't seem to recall the land had been declared surplus in a council meeting.

The old Sir John Franklin Community Club originally sold the piece of land to the city for $1 for the fire hall. I don't know if there were any provisos on the sale like there are on the Public Safety Building. Still, the club, recently amalgamated with Crescentwood and River Heights, was also interested in re-acquiring the land.

As indicated, I made a query about the fire hall on behalf of a third party. I had backed off when told that there was negotiations under way and was waiting to hear the city make an official announcement. If a land transfer was announced, I was expecting to hear more about the future of the fire hall. At the very least, I thought I would be able to tell the third party who they needed to contact to talk about leasing or buying.

The CBC made the link to Shindico owners and Sam Katz being business partners in the Goldeyes.  This is not the first time this has been mentioned and it won't be the last. I don't know that any undue influence has occurred here. On the face of it, I'd say no. Shindico had land, the city needed land. Still, with so many financial deals going on, the city needs to be an open and transparent as it can be.

This is also not the first time Shindico has acted ahead of the action. They listed the Winnipeg Square parkade for sale long before the city decided to sell or who would do the selling. There was a tonne of grumbling back then from other real estate companies and city officials. Shindico apologized and said it was just testing the market for the parking lot. This is a bit disingenuous. It is like listing City Hall for sale and then going; Oops! The company laughed all the way to to the bank because they eventually did get the sale and netted a $500,000 commission.

Shindico didn't get to be where they are by being mild. The city can be painfully slow to move but there is a process and if it isn't followed, there can be issues. One big example is the sign that went up on the Boyd Building. There is no doubt the owners thought they would get away with putting it up and that the city would cave in. They didn't.

The city and interested investors need to make sure things follow a protocol. There are many properties that will be coming up for sale soon. Police buildings, golf courses and the like. There can be no more oops moments where suddenly all the golf courses end up on a real estate site for sale.

Be transparent and keep people informed. Nothing worse than feeling that only insiders know what is happening or can make deals.

To close off, I hope the fire halls end up being useful. I think they can.

Air Canada and Downtown Winnipeg

Like OMC, I was driving to work on Kenaston when I heard the CBC Radio One national news report on.

It was rather than disconcerting. I wrote last October about the Radisson Hotel renovations last year and how things needed to be cleaned up around there.

This was the text of Air Canada's message:

Ladies and Gentlemen, In response to several reports indicating questionable safety in the area surrounding the Radisson Hotel in downtown Winnipeg a Security Assessment was conducted, in conjunction with the Winnipeg Police Service, by Air Canada Corporate Security. Recent environmental issues have forced approximately 1,000 displaced people from rural Manitoba to numerous hotels in the downtown area. Instances of public intoxication, resulting in several downtown locations being susceptible to crimes of violence and opportunity, have been observed by local Police. Based on concern generated by Crew Reports, Corporate Security, and keeping in mind our obligation, to the extent possible, for ensuring the safety of layover locations, a decision has been made to relocate. Alternative downtown layover options were investigated, and while The Inn at the Forks is considered secure, as a boutique hotel they were not able to accommodate our crews. We considered locations available outside the downtown core and while our preference was the Clarion at Polo Park they, as well, were not interested in accommodating our crews. For now, we have arranged through API, to have Crews layover at the Sandman Hotel and Suites. Information on the Sandman Hotel and Suites is found at www.sandmanhotels.com/en/hotels/manitoba/winnipegairport.php. We will certainly revisit the downtown area once the present situation improves. Authorities anticipate displaced people to be an issue for another 12 months. Best Regards,

Captain Jeff Dennis Manager, Flying Operations

I have a few of the people who have been displaced by flooding as clients. None are too happy about their situation. In some cases, kids are still not back in school. Two governments are responsible for their welfare: the province and the feds. One government is responsible for the outcome of so may displaced people: Winnipeg.

It isn't just First Nations people but that probably comprises the bulk although who can say?

Winnipeg has a drug and alcohol problem. It isn't just solved by throwing Hell's Angels in jail. That goes after the supply. It doesn't do anything about the demand. And that demand is there. Legally or illegally, there are people seeking out substances.

We can go a long way to talk about addiction, prohibition and how legal and illegal all blend together. We need that debate. We should have that debate. One thing is clear though after that debate is that addiction is best worked on as a medical problem and that has been clearly supported by the recent unanimous Supreme Court decision. The Harper Tories sought to shut down a medical response in favour a criminal approach. The court pretty must indicated that pushing addicts underground who seek to minimize the harm they are in or end their addiction must have have protection under the law and province trumps federal government on that matter.

However, back to the Air Canada issue, it is obvious that that the company took a look at the situation. Much like how Western Financial decamped to Polo Park out of fear of downtown, Air Canada is going down the same route. The loss of Western Financial's 350 employees and 72,000 square feet of office is a particularly bitter pill to swallow.

The war of words on CBC's and the Free Press website over Air Canada's decision is ferocious.

One blogger was blunt how bad it is.

So, here is what I've seen in my time living downtown. I am going to focus on the negative first, and then go into the positives, because there are lots of good things about the area.

Most recently, there has been a man hanging around outside my apartment every afternoon, and he bothers everyone that walks by for money. He's called me a bitch for telling him a) no and b) to get off the private property. Really, I'm a bitch because I don't want to give you money and because I don't appreciate you trespassing? Eat a dick.

My apartment has a convenience store attached to it. There's this wonderful Korean family that runs it and they are all super sweet. There's an ATM there I sometimes use. One day I came downstairs to use it and there was a sign on it saying it was broken. As I went to walk away, the owner of the store told me the machine actually worked, he just put the sign up because he was sick of the drug dealers coming in off the street to use it to conduct their business.

Some other fun things about downtown. Hmmmm... well, I live down the street from a Manitoba Housing complex that is full of equal parts welfare bums and unmedicated crazy people, all of whom seem to wander over to the City Place food court to loiter all day. There's one particular crazy man that will try to sell you anything he can steal. One time he tried to sell me a computer monitor for five bucks. A steal of deal, literally. Mostly, these people order a McDonald's coffee and then hang around the mall all day, smelling up the place, bumming smokes and change and in some extreme cases, publicly masturbating.

Last week a friend saw a man just hanging out, bleeding from the head, chilling at the fountain on the main floor. He also told me there were unsupervised little kids throwing pudding cups off the second floor.

It goes on. I recommend reading it.

One writer states:

I've seen Air Canada flight crews take some excessive harrassment from drunks as the crews tried to check in at the Radisson on more than one occasion. And I don't blame them for this move a second, however thoughtless a couple of their comments in their discussion of the issue might have been.

I do blame the people who persist in claiming that the solution is silence or propaganda. We need to stop talking about or excusing these problem, and to start demanding that certain indifferent public officials in both levels of local government earn their pay and fix the problem instead.

Other cities have cleaned up their downtowns and dramatically reduced petty, nuisance and violent crimes in public areas. We can, too, but only if someone gets off their ass.

People are going to feel defensive about the city and they should. The mayor Sam Katz ask lashed out about the decision. Don't know if he is Winnipeg today though. Did he call it in from Phoenix? And Greg Selinger will say that he has done his part. if that is true, what is up with Air Canada and Western Financial? Has the helicopter caught any aggressive drunks and panhandlers? Has there been some dramatic enforcement of provincial liquor laws or at the liquor stores?

We have had city and provincial continuity in leadership and downtown still has the same burning questions. It can't be brushed aside and no one solution will solve the problem. It has to be a full court press day after day after day.

There are some bright spots downtown. The Forks is not considered part of downtown. Imagine that. The greatest strength of The Forks is that people don't consider it to be part of downtown. Broadway and the Exchange District have their strengths too.

However, there are too many wide swaths of vacant land that are only used for parking, too many neglected Manitoba Housing buildings, too many rogue bars, too many people with substance abuse issues or mental illnesses and just too few people living in the area to say: This is my home, it is unacceptable that this is happening!

I think it is safe to say that city and provincial officials need to dig deep and figure out how to solve the problem rather than bluster about how wrong people are to have negative feelings.

Suffice to some people in the suburbs might always have negative feelings about the downtown even if there were no issues related to crime or poverty. Can't say that some who live in the downtown don't have feelings about those in the suburbs as well.

We can't help those feelings if they are related to lifestyle. We can help it if it is related to safety.

Building the downtown is going to have to be step by step so that a community is formed. It has to have a living component that thinks about how to make that area liveable, safe and attractive.

So what to do about the problem of the Radisson Hotel and perhaps the Air Canada building?

Well, first is to boost visible police and security presence. Drug deals can't be happening in the park outside of Air Canada. Panhandlers can't be loitering and aggressive at every bus stop and business entrance.

Larger issue of addiction and poverty will no doubt play a part but safety, security and personal responsibility will have to taken care of.

In the 1980s, the Exchange District around Albert and Arthur Streets was under siege from prostitution. It took a concerted effort and it was driven away. Sad thing though is it never ends, it just moves places.

Still, had the prostitution stayed, it is hard to say whether Red River College and others would have moved into the area.

The point is that if Portage Avenue suddenly became the safe and attractive place that people aspire to, elements of crime and poverty could move elsewhere if the underlying problems remain.

But first things first: address the immediate safety needs around the MTS Centre and hotels. Keep at them until the area takes on a vibrancy like we see at The Forks and perceptions will change because the circumstances have changed.

Next post up will be about something encouraging. The transformation around the University of Winnipeg.

The Flood Part 2 - Sump Pump and Pits

As with all things government, the sump pump and pit program is likely to run into problems. Don't get me wrong: The sump pump and pit and back water valve program is a good idea. It should have been done years ago and it would have probably saved a lot of hardship for homeowners and the city and province alike. However, the retroactive nature of the funding is probably going to drain the funding quickly.

You have to wonder if the reason the province has never thought about it till now is because Greg Selinger has never had a flooded basement nor has a sump pump and pit.

Sam Katz had a sump pump and pit installed in his house a number of years ago. It is too bad he didn't push for this program earlier on.

In fact, I'd like to know who came up with the idea because it made sense to do it for many years now.

There are some people who have called the program a boondoggle. The same was said about the floodway.

This is a program that could save property owners hundreds of thousands every year.

There are a few things that the city and province should think about as the program proceeds:

- Make sure it is not underfunded.
- Make sure that inspections are not delayed.
- Expedite work. If a company such as Sturgeon Constuction was suitable in the past for work like sump pump installation, they are probably suitable now too.
- Think about extending the program to cover everyone who wants to be covered in existing homes.

There is no sense ending the program when danger will continue for existing home for years to come.

Sometimes the city and the province cause chaos with their expiration dates. I think the low flush toilet problem is a case in point.

This is going to save people money. It will benefit the city and the province in the end. Please monitor the program carefully and consider extending it.

New Stadium - Walk On, Fear the Boot

The stadium was approved by council using a method that the mayor says he disagrees with: the walk on. The vote ultimately was 14-2.

It is most likely that if the details of the price of this stadium were revealed before the election, that there might have been a lot more pressure on councillors to balk. Instead we have the traditional rush through council with the inevitable threats that things will only get more expensive if the decision is out off even one day.

The province is on the hook for the bulk of money. Some NDP supporters will say that this money well spent. Then problem is that there are a lot of these brilliant spending initiatives and few ones where the government is showing restraint. The city and province have limits to their liability. The province has none. There is no end to how much they are willing to spend.

The next provincial election will likely focus on fiscal responsibility. A big deficit and some huge projects and promises is going to give a number of people the jitters especially if interest rates are rising. The provincial NDP should fear the boot. Greg Selinger is showing little restraint and no matter how many times we hear that we need these projects, the question of how to control spending will not go away. So many worthy causes, none worth cutting leads to unimaginable deficits.

As far as city councillors and the mayor go, they should fear the nightmare at Polo Park from their development plans and realize it is likely to cost them a lot more to fix traffic problems than they think. Fear the boot. Sam Katz should be particularly ashamed by the last minute walk on for a critical vote.

To the federal Conservative government who made everyone dance to their tune by not approving any plan except one that put the stadium in a federal seat represented by their party, hope that no one notices just how bad the deficit is come election time next year. Fear the boot.

Parking Lots

Winnipeg parking lot of the future?

Mary Agnes Welch in the Free Press is doing a four part series on parking in Winnipeg. There have been some good blog reports on this subject over the last several months but kudos to the big paper for a detailed look that includes locations and values on the land.

One thing from the article that Welch wrote:

Other lots are unofficially earmarked as sites for future development. The large Impark lot on Main Street north of the Manitoba Museum is seen as a location for the museum's expansion one day.

I've said it once before and I'll say it again: I believe the land by the museum should be reserved for Manitoba's first dedicated Science Museum.

I am seriously considering mounting some sort of campaign for the idea. What do others think?

In the mean time, I do think I see a few positive nibblings at some of the surface lots. However, we keep seeing things like the Shanghai restaurant crop up.

Good blogger articles on the parking issue here from West End Dumplings. And here from Rise and Sprawl.

As I've said, a few bloggers have covered this. I was rather surprised in the election that there was a lot of talk about surface lots and few answers.

I honestly think that the city has to make sure that they continue to resist demolitions of buildings for future plans that are non-existent.

At the same time, I think that on land set aside for things like the Manitoba Museum and the Convention Center that serious consideration be made to fulfill their expansions.

Manitoba and the Winnipeg will soon be 150 years old. To this day, the Museum remains one of the top Michelin attractions for the province. It is time to invigorate and expand that legacy.

As far as the Winnipeg Convention Centre goes, it is time to think big in the same way as the original building was thinking big. I know some focus on whether the facility earns back the money it cost to build and operate it but I'd argue that the numerous conventions hosted there have economic impacts far beyond the subsidy of $2 million it receives from the city.



Sam Katz and other rejected the expansion the Winnipeg Convention Centre announced in 2008.

I certainly don't think the project should go forward with only public financial backing. I personally think it is time to invite a private casino operators to make a bid for Winnipeg's first Las Vegas-style hotel, casino and sportsbook attached to an expanded Convention Center. A royalties agreement should be put in place to support the expansion and operating costs of the Convention Center within a timeframe that made its goal one of self-sufficiency.

It is time for innovative thinking that involves more private funding being brought to the table.

Update: I spoke to two clients yesterday about the Manitoba Moose game on New Year's Eve. Both expressed interest in attending this fun evening that is really geared to families but worried about parking. They said that they might not go because they weren't sure where to park or felt it was hard to find parking.

I realize this is exasperating for those who say there are 20,000 parking spaces in the downtown but it doesn't mean that people don't feel that way anyway.

Some people who do know about parking downtown resent paying for it and circle endlessly looking for free street parking.

In any event, I was able to convince both people I talked to that the Manitoba Moose game was too good to miss and that Portage Place (among other parking lots) was priced at $5 for the evening and that this was a great price for a family of four of five to manage on a night out.

I explained that the skywalk was was warm and safe for a family to navigate for the game and that Portage Place was a good place to store the car to melt some of that winter snow that accumulates at the wheel well. No sweeping or warming up the car after. The only thing I said was to be patient while exiting but that I had never had to wait more than 15 minutes or so while leaving the parking lot.

I think I convinced for certain one of the families I talked to. The other was giving it serious consideration.

These can't be the only families weighing out their evening out based on parking. Overall, I believe that many families when they hear what $5 pays for when going to a Moose game in terms of parking, they find it is a reasonable cost.

Assiniboine Avenue two-way traffic

Sam Katz aka H.R. Pufnstuf



Jenny Gerbasi as Wilhelmina W. Witchiepoo

It was a fantastical world that was created on Living Island aka known as Winnipeg. H.R. Pufnstuf aka Mayor Sam Katz was hypnotized by Wilhelmina W. Witchiepoo into thinking that turning the magical Assiniboine Avenue into a topsy turvy world for little Jimmy (residents and taxpayers) and Freddy the Flute (alternative media) to have fun getting home.

Thankfully, Freddy the Flute shrilly blew his whistle until the black magic ended and order was partly restored to Assiniboine Avenue.

However, Freddy has to keep blowing because Witchiepoo continues to use magic around Living Island. "We must be ever vigilant and reverse the bad magic wherever we see it", says Freddy.