Attendance numbers down at fringe festival

Attendance numbers down at fringe festival

The 2019 edition of the Winnipeg Fringe Theatre Festival wrapped Sunday with an overall drop in attendance numbers compared to previous fests. This year, ticketed attendance came in at 98,673, compared to 103,251 in 2018 and more than 105,000 in 2016, the highest Winnipeg fringe attendance yet.

Not counting the free outdoor performances, the festival had 178 shows in 30 venues over its 12-day run. Sold-out performances numbered 209 out of 1,511 total indoor performances.

Outdoor attendance totalled between 60,000 and 70,000, with close to 5,000 in Kids Fringe attendance.

The drop came despite consistently good weather; some rain fell, but no day was rained out.

Security guard in stable condition after grocery store assault

A security guard was taken to hospital after an assault at a Sargent Avenue FreshCo Friday, just days after another guard was stabbed during a robbery at a St. James Dollarama.

School zones return Tuesday as lead-footed drivers risk steep fines

School crossing guards are preparing to resume their posts on busy corners across the Winnipeg School Division, but Luna Zúñiga isn’t one of them.

Zúñiga hung up her high-visibility vest about 30 months ago after she was struck by a motorist while escorting a child through a pedestrian crosswalk on Grant Avenue at Lanark Street.

Zúñiga protected the child, who wasn’t hurt, but the educational assistant at nearby J.B. Mitchell School suffered life-altering injuries, including nerve damage that limits her stamina, range of motion and makes her left leg “feel like it’s burning all the time.”

“I don’t know what needs to be done (to improve school-zone safety),” she said. “But I do know that when a six-year-old is crossing the street, a car needs to be fully stopped.”

Committee vote brings outdoor learning facility one step closer for Riel school division

Plans for an outdoor education facility that would host Indigenous and land-based learning for the Louis Riel School Division are moving forward.

The one-storey, 10,869-square-foot (1,010-square-metre) building would feature three classrooms, seven offices, multi-purpose rooms, workstations and common areas. The site would also offer an entry plaza and an outdoor classroom on 8.2 acres (3.3 hectares) of land at 3280 St. Mary’s Rd. in the St. Vital Perimeter South neighbourhood.

Existing buildings would remain and be used as a bus maintenance shop, outdoor material storage sheds and a covered outdoor work area.

Once the facility is built, students could take field trips to the site to learn about the environment, as well as Indigenous culture.

Winnipeg teacher disciplined for ‘liking’ student’s post

A Winnipeg teacher has been reprimanded for accidentally clicking ‘like’ on a student’s year-old social media post during a late-night scroll.

A recent investigation by Manitoba’s independent teacher commissioner found Jordan Nelson, a hockey coach in the Pembina Trails School Division, engaged in professional misconduct by viewing online profiles of students who were following a team account he was managing on behalf of his school.

“Using information associated with the school’s hockey team account to access and review a student’s social media account, without any legitimate educational or workplace purpose, was inappropriate and inconsistent with the professional boundaries expected of a teacher,” commissioner Noni Classen wrote.

A five-page report, better known as a consent resolution agreement, details agreed-upon facts about an October 2025 incident and subsequent disciplinary action.

Village Green Bakery keeps focus on classic quality, kindness, fun in Victoria Beach

VICTORIA BEACH — They’re not carved into stone tablets — they’re reminders and not commandments, after all — but behind one of the display cases at Village Green Bakery is a laminated sheet of letter-size paper with a list of statements outlining how owner Jen Leslie wants staffers to approach their work.

Fittingly, there’s a baker’s dozen of them.

One is aimed specifically at a stoic teen who’s worked at the bakery since it opened in summer 2022 — “Smile, Brody,” it says — while the other 12 are meant for all 17 employees at the seasonal business, which is open annually from May long weekend until Thanksgiving.

“Smile and enjoy the ride,” is the first reminder, followed by, “The summer is short, so make it a good one,” “always take the high road” and “you are awesome.”