Clock ticking on potential public purchase of Lemay Forest

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This article was published 06/12/2023 (680 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

St. Norbert residents rallying to save Lemay Forest from potential development will soon branch out into fundraising efforts, amid no offers to buy the land for public use.

Grassroots efforts to preserve the 22.5-acre urban forest site on private land in south Winnipeg have ramped up since an October notice by owner Tochal Development Group its housing plans could be finalized in spring 2024.

Tochal said it would entertain purchase offers, before moving forward.

While no level of government has yet committed to buy the land for public use — despite requests to do so — a spokesperson for the Coalition to Save Lemay Forest says it continues to seek meetings with political leaders in hopes of finding financial support.

The project is worthy of public investment, Cat Macaulay Gauthier said Wednesday, adding the group expects to launch a crowdfunding campaign to raise donations toward the effort “very soon.”

“This city is one of the worst in the country for the amount of green space and urban forest. We need forests to sort of mitigate climate change events and disasters. People need green space and trees for their mental and physical health,” said Macaulay Gauthier.

Preserving the land “is the right thing to do” and could ensure Winnipeg doesn’t lose thousands of trees, just as it pursues an urban forest strategy that aims to add thousands more, she said.

While 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. — has been privately owned for many years, it continued to serve as a popular public destination until the end of November.

Tochal Development has since posted “no trespassing” signs, after giving advance warning of the move.

“It’s devastating to see that something like that can be taken away from us and it’s getting very real by the second, very fast,” said coalition member Jaxon Kowaluk. “We’re keeping eyes on the forest and we’re going to keep watching it from a distance.”

Coun. Markus Chambers (St. Norbert-Seine River) has raised a motion that calls for the City of Winnipeg to negotiate a price for the site and refer its potential purchase to next year’s budget process.

Council’s property and development committee is set to vote on the motion Jan. 11.

Chambers said some discussions have started on determining the value of the land, but he doesn’t believe Winnipeg can afford to buy it alone. “The city simply doesn’t have resources right now. We’d need to get partners to offset those costs.”

The councillor said he hopes the forest can remain intact to preserve green space, with the development moved elsewhere.

Meantime, Tochal has not received any offers to purchase the land in order to preserve the forest, said John Wintrup, a planner for the company.

“Nobody has contacted us expressing an interest in buying the lands and we have no meeting scheduled with anybody (on that).”

The company’s first choice remains to create much-needed “inclusionary housing,” such as accessible, affordable and assisted-living units, at the site, he noted.

Wintrup said planning on the proposal is underway and an open house is scheduled for Jan. 6 at St. Norbert Community Centre.

“We’re starting our plans to advance an application,” he said.

Tochal originally warned if solid progress on a potential sale to protect the forest isn’t reached by Dec. 31, it would move forward with the housing plan. Wintrup indicated there may still be some time remaining to gauge interest.

“We can’t wait forever. At some point, a decision has to be made here.”

A provincial spokesperson confirmed the Manitoba government is not engaged in talks with the developer.

In an emailed statement, Manitoba Environment and Climate Change Minister Tracy Schmidt indicated the province won’t act on the matter, at this point.

“There is currently a motion before city council to purchase the Lemay Forest, and we look forward to seeing the results as this motion proceeds. The province is not currently considering purchasing the forest,” said Schmidt.

joyanne.pursaga@freepress.mb.ca

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