Mayor considering return of downtown safety-lighting program

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This article was published 18/09/2023 (749 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Winnipeg’s mayor is promising to explore options to better light up the downtown in hopes of making it safer, two years after council cancelled a similar project.

In a speech Monday, Mayor Scott Gillingham told members of the Downtown Winnipeg BIZ and some of their employees that he’s interested in considering the potential return of a city grant program that was previously offered to help businesses cover the cost of safety lighting.

“I’d be glad to revisit that… I can certainly look into that again,” Gillingham said during a question-and-answer session during the organization’s Downtown Speaker Series event.

In 2018, the city set aside $300,000 for a city-led building exterior lighting grant program, which offered to cover up to 50 per cent of eligible project costs. In 2021, council voted to discontinue the program due to a lack of interest.

The Downtown Winnipeg BIZ said many business owners found it challenging to complete the application process for the original grant program.

“Businesses and building owners were definitely interested in adding more lighting but sometimes the process to go through or to get approval was very challenging,” Kate Fenske, chief executive officer of the BIZ, told the mayor during the Q and A.

For example, the BIZ said the previous program required business owners to invest in upgrades before they knew whether they would be approved for a grant.

Gillingham said a new version, if approved, could aim to be more accessible. Since the Manitoba government also recently promised to enhance lighting as part of its downtown safety strategy, a joint effort may also be possible, the mayor’s office noted.

Gillingham said he also expects to announce the leader of a long-awaited transit security team “in the coming days.”

“I’m really hoping (the leader is announced) this week,” he told reporters.

By the end of this year, 24 peace officers are expected to patrol Winnipeg Transit buses and bus stops to combat rising violence.

During his speech, the mayor said he expects a “coalition of the willing” can come together to improve safety, stressing business, non-profit, private-sector and government leaders should join a coherent plan to address homelessness and addictions.

“There’s a willingness right now in our community… and we’re going to continue to tap into it and work together to improve our city,” Gillingham told reporters.

The mayor’s speech also focused on the need to attract more Winnipeggers to live, work and visit downtown, noting he would prefer to see City of Winnipeg workers return to their offices, especially those in the downtown.

“I think we, as the city, as an employer, need to lead by example,” he said.

A city report notes 1,275 municipal employees continue to work from home on a part-time basis and 275 do so full time. The mayor said he has many questions about the report’s finding that the city’s flexible workplace program doesn’t hamper productivity.

However, he did not commit to call for specific changes to that program, which is set to be debated at Thursday’s executive policy committee meeting.

Fenske said improving safety is a critical step to reviving the downtown economy. While business revenues are increasing, more downtown businesses still shut down this year than the number of new ones that opened up, she said.

The BIZ believes the number of office workers who are downtown at least part time has reached about two-thirds of pre-pandemic levels.

Fenske said about 18,000 people now live downtown and attracting more residents is the top priority of the BIZ, which she expects would boost the economy and improve safety.

While that work continues, she welcomed the mayor’s interest in seeking interim safety strategies.

“We really need to make sure that there are improvements that can happen now, so I’m really excited to hear about the mayor talking about (revisiting) that lighting program,” she said.

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Meanwhile, Gillingham said police must also play a key role in improving safety in the city centre. In July, the province announced funding for 24 new Winnipeg Police Service officers to patrol the area. They are expected to be in place by next year.

To increase the area’s police presence in the meantime, some community support officers are now being assigned to carry out downtown foot patrols as part of their duties, WPS Chief Danny Smyth wrote on his Substack page Sunday.

“Our front-line officers are very skilled at meeting the challenge of balancing public safety with individual rights. Police are part of the solution. You will see us out there,” wrote Smyth.

joyanne.pursaga@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @joyanne_pursaga

Joyanne Pursaga
Reporter

Joyanne is city hall reporter for the Winnipeg Free Press. A reporter since 2004, she began covering politics exclusively in 2012, writing on city hall and the Manitoba Legislature for the Winnipeg Sun before joining the Free Press in early 2020. Read more about Joyanne.

Every piece of reporting Joyanne produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.