Manitoba’s premier and Winnipeg’s mayor signalled to the city’s business community they have committed to working together to boost the city’s economy.
Premier Wab Kinew and Mayor Scott Gillingham shared the stage at Economic Development Winnipeg’s annual general meeting on Thursday, the first time a mayor and premier have addressed the group together.
One of their key priorities is making downtown Winnipeg safer.
“For me, success is if you’re proud to come downtown,” Kinew told the audience at the RBC Convention Centre.
“It’s a very simple test. Are you proud to bring an investor, a client, a potential business partner to downtown Winnipeg?”
Key to that goal is addressing underlying issues like homelessness and mental health, the two leaders agreed.
City funding for the Community Connections space in the Millennium Library is set to run out at the end of this year, and members of city council have called on the province to step in to fund it.
“A lot of times the services that people need in that space are services that the province provides and not the city,” Gillingham told reporters.
“I think this is an opportunity for us to be working in collaboration, the city and the province, to make sure people get the help they need.”
Kinew says the perception of safety in the city is a priority, and they are working to get people the supports they need.
“Over this past winter, we were able to move about 200 people out of bus shacks and from sleeping outdoors into hotels,” he said.
“Now the plan is, as we keep moving people out of bus shacks and out of tents into temporary accommodation, how do we move those folks into social housing?”
The premier and mayor also spoke about the importance of collaboration around economic reconciliation with Indigenous people.
The city and province have worked with the Treaty One Development Corporation on developing Naawi-Oodena at the site of the former Kapyong Barracks on Kenaston.
Economic Development Winnipeg executive director Ryan Kuffner hinted more could soon be coming to the site.
“Not just creating jobs and investing capital for the benefit of Winnipeggers, Manitobans, but also creating a completely new understanding of what economic reconciliation and Indigenous economic development can look like. Because it’s going to change the face of our city.”
A gas bar was announced last year as the first business planned for the site.
In an email, Kathleen Bluesky, CEO for Treaty One Development Corporation, said locations have been selected for a new hotel and convention centre, which are in the conceptual stage.
“We are optimistic that this development will become a key attraction for conference visitors to Winnipeg, enhancing the city’s appeal as a prime destination for both business and leisure,” she said.