The Forks blew out the candles on 20 years of existence Friday night.
It has now been a full generation since the 65 acres of land was liberated from being private property covered by rail yards, hidden behind the CN Rail station on Main Street.
Until then, trespassing signs prevented Winnipeggers from going onto the property to get to the banks of the rivers behind the rail yards.
It wasn't always like this. Before the railway came, for thousands of years, The Forks served as a meeting place, first for aboriginal peoples and then for fur traders.
Present-day Winnipeg began near the site with the fort at Upper Fort Garry.
But in 1968, Winnipeg Tribune columnist Val Werier -- who now contributes articles to the Free Press -- began writing about turning the site into public space.
Today, Werier thinks there has been too much development at the site, but he admits "on the whole, it is better than what occupied the space before.
Local singer Christine Fellows, right, performs at the 20th birthday celebration.
"It was an eyesore... we neglected our riverbanks and we still don't give them their proper attention, but at least we have this park at The Forks.
"It has fulfilled part of its hope."
Werier says he'd like to see The Forks come up with a plan to free up some of the land by getting rid of the large parking lots. He'd also like to see archeological digs that allow the public to participate, like they did in the early years at the site.
The first stage of The Forks began in 1986, when $3.5 million in federal funding was freed up for a national historic site.
But The Forks really began in 1988, when the three levels of government -- the federal, provincial and civic -- came together through the Core Area Initiative for a $10-million land transfer from CN.
The first project at the site was the $7.1-million public market which took two former horse stables and turned them into The Forks Market.
Projects over the years have included the Manitoba Children's Museum, the Manitoba Theatre for Young People, a marina, restaurants, a television station, a hotel, a skateboard park and an outdoor stage.
A walkway follows the Assiniboine River to behind the legislature while another goes north along the Red River to the pedestrian bridge with the Salisbury House restaurant in the middle.
In the not too distant future, the Forks will be home to the Canadian Museum for Human Rights.
There have been supporters and critics through the years. Greening the Forks, a citizens group determined to have open public space in the downtown, was probably the most high profile at the beginning. But there have also been aboriginal, Metis and other groups wanting The Forks to reflect their past as well.
Even its name was controversial because many said the meeting of the Assiniboine River with the Red River is not a fork, but a confluence of two rivers.
Bill Norrie, who was mayor when the first agreements were signed, said they knew they wanted a market, but beyond that the possibilities for the site were wide open.
"I think it has done extremely well through the years," Norrie said. "It was quite a major undertaking and some people wondered how it would work out... but I think it went great."
Norrie said what gratifies him most is how much The Forks has become a meeting place for Winnipeggers and a destination for tourists.
"It's a real centre for people coming to visit," he said. "By and large it's a really important part of Winnipeg."
There have been many proposals for the plot of land throughout the years including condos, an aquarium, a football stadium, and a water park.
Jim August, who was general manager of the Core Area Initiative at the time The Forks began and is now chief executive officer of The Forks North Portage Partnership, said every building on the site when the land was turned over by the railroad has been redeveloped.
"People looking back today would say The Forks has evolved the way it should have," he said.
"The area has met its vision -- it is a meeting place. It has become the place where people go," he said.
kevin.rollason@freepress.mb.ca
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