Trouble brewing for Swandel thanks to Bomber stadium

According to Mary Agnes Welch, the Winnipeg Free Press’s public policy reporter, St. Norbert councillor Justin Swandel may be a city hall casualty in the upcoming civic election thanks to the new Bomber stadium.

In her latest blog entry, Welch explains that she has seen the group of angry residents grow to 300 over the past few months and become more educated and vocal on the issue of their neighbourhood’s traffic increasing without public consultation.

While she calls Swandel, “one of the smartest, hardest-working and most detail-oriented councillors at city hall,” the veteran political and former city hall reporter believes that he has come off poorly in interviews recently.

She writes that this issue may combine with the stadium concerns and lead to a win by ward challenger Louise May.

No more barriers at Portage and Main: Wasylycia-Leis

Former MP and MLA Judy Wasylycia-Leis took her election promises to the heart of Winnipeg’s downtown last week.

During a forum on downtown issues held last Thursday, Wasylycia-Leis pledged to work with businesses to hammer out a deal to remove the concrete barriers that have been in place at the Portage Avenue and Main Street intersection for the past 31 years, the Winnipeg Free Press reported.

The last attempt to remove the barriers was in 2007 when six of the seven property owners involved had signed on to a plan that would see the concrete replaced with movable options that would allow pedestrians to cross during evenings and weekends.

Mayor Sam Katz said he doesn’t really believe the crossing is an issue for Winnipeggers but he believes evenings and weekends are a “reasonable compromise” and may look into it if he is re-elected.

Published in Volume 65, Number 7 of The Uniter (October 14, 2010)