Seven hospitalized after eating salami recalled due to possible salmonella

The powers that be in Winnipeg have pushed for cheap property taxes for decades. As a result, the city doesn’t have enough money to balance the books, let alone maintain infrastructure, deliver services and respond to challenges like homelessness and the toxic drug crisis.

Winnipeg’s fiscal problem stems from decades of keeping property-tax increases below inflation and relying on inadequate revenues to fund a growing city. The result? Today, Winnipeg spends less money per person on city services than it did in 2001.

A look at the books at city hall is stark. Winnipeg has run a deficit almost every year since the COVID-19 pandemic because of climate-change-driven heavy ice and snowstorms, higher fuel costs and increased policing overtime. During this time, city council tried to cut and freeze public service spending where it could; as a result, community services have been cut to the bone.

Departments responsible for what makes a city a good place to live have been squeezed. Since 1999, community services — responsible for libraries, recreation, swimming lessons and aspects of Winnipeg’s poverty-reduction work — has 149 fewer staff positions, an 18 per cent reduction, even as the city’s population has grown 35 per cent, or by 220,000 people.

The province is investigating after a worker died on the job after falling off a roof last month.

The worker, who was employed by Winnipeg-based Pristine Roofing & Siding, was critically injured on Sept. 22 after falling from a roof during a residential re-roofing project in the Rural Municipality of St. Andrews, a provincial spokesperson said in an email.

The man later died.

The investigation is ongoing, and no other information will be provided, the spokesperson said Thursday.

DEAR MISS LONELYHEARTS: Halloween has always been my favourite time of year. I do my house up with lots of spooky lighting and characters on the lawn with eerie sounds booming out.

But last year I got seriously hassled by some people in the neighbourhood who thought it was too creepy. How do I get them on board this year? I don’t want to fight with them again.

— Want to Be Good Neighbour, River Heights

Dear Good Neighbour: Go to your close neighbours and explain what you want to do with your yard for Halloween this year, and also provide them with a firm time by which the celebrating will wrap up and things can quiet down.