There are signs people continue to squat or use illicit drugs in an abandoned, publicly owned housing complex in downtown Winnipeg weeks after the Manitoba government touted plans to redevelop the site.
People who live near the former Centre Village block said a metal security fence is failing to stop people from trespassing, stoking concerns about the potential for harm, crime or a fire.
“That’ll never change,” resident Marvin Hurd said about people breaching the perimeter. “The fence they’ve got up, people can get in anywhere.”
MIKE DEAL / FREE PRESS FILES
Winnipeg Police Service officers investigate at the housing complex at 575 Balmoral Street, where a deceased person was found in April.
Squatting and drug use have been problems at the 25-unit complex, located at 575 Balmoral St., since it was abandoned in 2019. It is located a block from an elementary school.
Last month, the province said Manitoba Housing would donate the site to the non-profit Winnipeg Housing Rehabilitation Corp., which will receive more than $2 million in government money to demolish the complex and build new social housing units.
Originally scheduled for April 26, the announcement was postponed because a man’s body was found at the complex that morning. Police said the death was not a criminal matter.
Vivian Ketchum and a friend ventured into the complex Sunday afternoon, after noticing an apparent breach of the fence while walking by.
The pair checks vacant buildings in the area for missing or vulnerable people, she said.
“We saw fresh signs that somebody had got in, so we figured we’d better check in to make sure nobody OD’d,” said Ketchum. “It’s very easy to get in there. It’s a death trap. It’s a fire trap.
“There are so many issues in that place — homelessness, drug use, trafficking. Can you imagine if kids get in there, and what could happen to them?”
The pair saw a mattress, blankets, clothes and other items among garbage on the ground floor. They also saw used needles and condoms, and signs of fire, said Ketchum.
VIVIAN KETCHUM PHOTO
Some of the signs that people continue to squat or use illicit drugs in an abandoned, publicly owned housing complex at 575 Balmoral Ave.
A board covering the doorway of a top-floor suite had been pried open.
Ketchum and her friend saw a Narcan kit — medication used to temporarily reverse an overdose from opioids, such as fentanyl or heroin — on a counter.
Garbage was strewn about the kitchen. There was a hole in a wall that is shared with a neighbouring suite, said Ketchum.
“We heard somebody moving around in the back. We decided to leave because we didn’t think it was safe,” she said, noting she called 911 to report at least one person inside.
Manitoba Housing security staff were outside the complex late Tuesday morning. A provincial spokesperson said perimeter security checks are done daily.
“If there is a breach in the fencing, the grounds are patrolled to determine if any units have been compromised and, if so, Winnipeg Police Service is notified and will attend with Manitoba Housing to conduct an interior search,” the spokesperson wrote in an email. “If individuals are located inside the building, they are walked out and provided with information on available resources, including shelters and other social services entities.”
Winnipeg Police Service spokesman Const. Claude Chancy said officers went to the site Monday morning and confirmed the fence and building appeared secure.
They saw nothing suspicious, he said.
“When a citizen encounters a derelict building which they believe has been trespassed or left insecure, police can be contacted and officers will ensure the structure has not been entered or compromised,” Chancy wrote in an email. “Trespassers will be removed and may be subject to arrest depending (on) their involvement.”
VIVIAN KETCHUM PHOTO
Squatting and drug use have been a problem at the 25-unit complex since it was abandoned in 2019.
People with concerns should never enter a secured building because they could jeopardize their safety, he said.
The city is not currently enforcing its vacant building bylaw at the former Centre Village site, said spokesman Adam Campbell.
A tender for demolition of the complex closed Tuesday. Demolition is scheduled to take place by the end of summer, the provincial spokesperson said.
Occupancy of the new social housing units is expected in late 2025 or early 2026, officials said last month.
chris.kitching@freepress.mb.ca
Chris Kitching
Reporter
Chris Kitching is a general assignment reporter at the Free Press. He began his newspaper career in 2001, with stops in Winnipeg, Toronto and London, England, along the way. After returning to Winnipeg, he joined the Free Press in 2021, and now covers a little bit of everything for the newspaper. Read more about Chris.
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