Developer wants to build 5,000-bed assisted-living facility on controversial St. Norbert land

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This article was published 11/01/2024 (636 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A local developer applied Thursday to build an expansive assisted-living facility at Lemay Forest, as St. Norbert residents continue to lobby governments to buy the property and preserve the trees instead.

John Wintrup, a planner for site owner Tochal Development Group, said the company has not received a realistic offer to purchase the property.

“We submitted our development application today to move forward…. Nobody’s approached us about negotiating a price,” Wintrup told reporters.

The proposed development is a four-storey, 5,000-bed facility with 5,000 parking stalls, he said.

The company does not have a recent appraised value for the land but believes social media suggestions it could sell for about $1.5 million are based on 20-year-old values that fall far short of a fair estimate, Wintrup said.

Grassroots efforts to preserve the 22.5-acre urban forest in south Winnipeg have ramped up since October.

Despite its private ownership, the site — located next to the southwest shores of the Red River, east of 35 De La Digue Ave., west of 100 Villa Maria Pl. and north of the homes at 819-915 Lemay Ave. — was a popular public destination for years.

Public access officially came to an end in November as development plans progressed.

The planner said he expects city staff will reject the development proposal, leading the land’s owner to appeal the decision to the Manitoba Municipal Board.

The application was filed on the same day that council’s property and development committee shelved a motion to negotiate a price for the forest and refer its potential purchase to the city’s budget process.

The committee instead approved a motion aiming to expedite the acquisition of forests and green spaces, such as Lemay. That motion would delegate authority to Winnipeg’s chief administrative officer to approve the donation or acquisition of land for “a nominal amount” from Manitoba Habitat Conservancy, if council gives it final approval.

City staff would also report back within 180 days on changing municipal policies to allow for future acceptance of such deals from other conservation organizations.

Coun. Sherri Rollins, the committee’s chairwoman, said those changes should bode well for acquiring more green space.

“I expect some good news in under 180 days,” said Rollins (Fort Rouge-East Fort Garry).

The councillor said empowering the CAO to act on the file without council approval should expedite the work.

“There are groups out there that are organizing to support Winnipeg’s strategic plan to advance (protecting) acres (of green space)… A motion was needed to say, ‘CAO, if you become aware that there is a group out there that has funds to buy up some strategic park land, urban forest and augment city’s parks, then please catch that ball,’” said Rollins.

However, Coun. Markus Chambers, who championed a public purchase of the land, fears the current plan could prevent the city from accessing about $3.1 million in federal and provincial funding.

“If a decision can’t be made on those lands (soon), they would have to reallocate those funds to other projects,” said Chambers (St. Norbert-Seine River).

Chambers said potential funding for the purchase includes about $1.5 million to acquire privately owned land “with unique natural ecosystems and habitats” in the Winnipeg area, which the province announced in an August press release. Since the senior government’s fiscal year ends March 31, he’s anxious to pursue a partnership now.

While Wintrup didn’t rule out selling the land so it can be preserved, he stressed the owner’s preference is to develop it.

“We’d be willing to accept a partnership… or something that brings value where we could do housing somewhere else, we’re very open to that. But the idea where my client is just going to turn over the land and get a tax receipt… that doesn’t achieve his goals at all,” he said.

During the property and development committee meeting, community members urged councillors to buy the land.

“Lemay forest is a peaceful refuge that provides ample space for people and wildlife. It would be tragic if this forest that has survived for hundreds of years fell to development today,” said Shelley Sweeney, a member of Outdoor Urban Recreational Spaces – Winnipeg.

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“We’ve been destroying our intact forests at an alarming rate…. The city has to make every effort to purchase the Lemay,” said Erna Buffie, a member of the Trees Please Winnipeg coalition.

One delegate told the committee research shows a cemetery linked to a past orphanage was once part of the land, though it’s not clear if human remains have since been removed.

Wintrup said the developer has researched the matter and taken steps to address it, including consultations to determine the extent Indigenous people were affected.

joyanne.pursaga@freepress.mb.ca

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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.