City needs to fast-track Route 90 expansion, one of Naawi-Oodena project’s chiefs says

One of the Manitoba First Nations chiefs directing the transformation of the former Kapyong Barracks is concerned that the city’s expansion of Kenaston Boulevard is not moving quickly enough.

Brokenhead Chief Gordon Bluesky said Wednesday that both residential and commercial development of Naawi-Oodena is well underway — including construction of a 260-unit apartment complex — and the city needs to hold up its end of the deal and move forward with the widening of Route 90.

“We’ve already done our part. We set aside those lands for the expansion. So we’re waiting for the rest of the governments to come together and fast-track that because at the end of the day, if we start building … and then we got a major construction happening at Route 90, it’s going to impact our businesses, it’s going to impact our homes,” Bluesky said.

Brokenhead is one of seven Treaty 1 First Nations which formed the Treaty One Development Corp. and oversees the Naawi-Oodena site.

Treaty One set aside about 10 hectares of land for the Kenaston widening, Bluesky said.

Bluesky and city, provincial and federal representatives were at the Naawi-Oodena site Wednesday morning to announce the federal government has opened its requests for qualifications — details and experience with prefabricated, modular and “mass timber” — for a 320-unit, mixed income housing development on the lands.

In September, Prime Minister Mark Carney announced the newly minted Build Canada Homes federal agency would develop thousands of affordable housing units to increase the nation’s housing stock. Winnipeg was chosen as one of six cities for the agency’s initial projects.

The projects are being carried out by Canada Lands, a federal Crown corporation responsible for real estate and development. Canada Lands owns 32 per cent of the 65-hectare site and Treaty One the remainder.

The plan for the Canada Lands portion of the Naawi-Oodena site is to have at least 40 per cent of the units listed at below-market value.

With the added units will come added traffic on the route and the Kenaston project is “critical” to the success of Naawi-Oodena, Mayor Scott Gillingham said at the conference.

“Route 90 right now, as you know, if you travelled it… it can get pretty backed up. Now think about adding the exciting fact of adding 3,000 housing units and up to a million square feet of commercial space. That will put increased pressure on that key economic artery,” Gillingham said.

On Oct. 30, city council voted 11-2 in favour taking the first steps to begin planning the expansion next year. The city would earmark $5 million to start property acquisitions and set early planning to begin in 2027, pending approval in the city’s 2026 budget, to be released Friday.

Construction could begin as soon as 2028.

The megaproject would widen Kenaston-Route 90 to offer three lanes in each direction between Taylor and Ness avenues. It would also replace the St. James bridges, separate aging pipes to reduce combined sewer overflows and add active-transportation pathways on both sides of Kenaston.

It’s expected to cost $614 million, plus $143 million in interest, if the city funds it entirely through debt.

The request for qualifications for the Naawi-Oodena housing units closes on Dec. 22. Selected proponents will proceed to the request for proposals stage in early 2026.

nicole.buffie@freepress.mb.ca