By the end of the summer, Winnipeg will no longer be "One Great City."
The city plans to replace 10 fading highway signs that have welcomed arriving motorists for 18 years, but have "outlived their aesthetic lifespan," in the words of a motion that comes before Mayor Sam Katz's cabinet next week.
"Before the summer is over, you will see something new and vibrant up there," Katz said of the One Great City signs that he considers an eyesore.
"Why do we have to enter the city and the first impression you get is a welcome that's falling apart? Those signs have been up there since 1990 and I don't think there's a doubt in anybody's mind they need some refreshing."
The One Great City signs, which mark the city limits at 10 access points to Winnipeg, were erected during former mayor Bill Norrie's final term in office. The slogan was a reference to the 1972 amalgamation of Winnipeg with 12 of its suburbs.
Katz said he would like to see the new signs bear the slogan City of Opportunity, his personal catchphrase for Winnipeg. Former mayor Glen Murray's Embrace the Spirit, which still adorns some city literature, is not an option.
Neither is Spirited Energy, the province's controversial catchphrase.
The final decision about the slogan will be left up to Destination Winnipeg, the city's arm's-length marketing agency, which is in charge of designing the new welcome signs.
"What will be featured prominently is 'Winnipeg.' It's not about the slogan or the catchphrase," said Destination Winnipeg president Stu Duncan, who considers City of Opportunity a good positioning statement for Winnipeg.
But the mayor-approved slogan would be a terrible choice, says the creator of One Great City, an indie-rock ballad inspired by the doomed highway signs SEnD and arguably the most popular song ever written about Winnipeg.
"We don't need positioning. Why don't we focus on something we have, like the fact we're in the centre of North America?" asked John K. Samson, the singer/lyricist of rock band The Weakerthans, who performed One Great City last night in Quebec City as part of the provincial capital's 400th anniversary celebrations.
Samson suggested a new slogan along the lines of The Centre of It All." However, it does not appear the general public will have a say in the final choice of slogan.
The design process will be tendered out and the new signs will incorporate the existing welcome sign infrastructure, Duncan said. That will keep the total cost of replacing all 10 signs below $50,000.
"It's not a major, costly project. A new sign doesn't bring in visitors, but it does give a better impression," Duncan said. "The signs we have do not reflect the Winnipeg of today, a city that's on a roll. They're old, they're tired, they're dated and they need a fresh, modern look."
Samson, who acknowledges One Great City provokes the strongest reaction at Weakerthans concerts SEnD the last line of the chorus is "I hate Winnipeg" SEnD said he agrees the welcome signs must be replaced.
But he'll still be sad to see them go.
"I guess I understand why they want to change them, because they never made any sense," he said. "It was a curious slogan, but I kind of liked it because nobody from outside Winnipeg would understand it."
bartley.kives@freepress.mb.ca
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