Crowds crank up Canada Day fun despite weather-related cancellations

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This article was published 01/07/2024 (465 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Safety issues, increased crime and less foot traffic cloaking Winnipeg’s Osborne Village didn’t stop the neighbourhood from quietly celebrating Canada Day.

Empty shot and pint glasses lined tables full of patrons at the Toad in the Hole pub while acoustic music filled the bar.

“It’s too bad the street party isn’t happening, but smaller stuff like this feels safer and you can actually spend time with people instead of losing them in the big crowds,” said Dani Partridge, clad in a red and white T-shirt at the bar.

General manager Billy Viveiros shared the patrons’ lament for the loss of the street party, which used to close multiple blocks of Osborne Street and draw tens of thousands of people until cost-associated issues and the COVID-19 pandemic shut down the party in 2020.

Viveiros speculated crime could be to blame for the low attendance in the neighbourhood for July 1, too.

“No one goes out any more … downtown is sketchy, the village is sketchy,” he said outside the Toad Monday evening.

In its 2023 statistical report, the WPS reported a 33 per cent increase in crime in the River-Osborne neighbourhood from the previous year, including a 51 per cent increase in violent crime and a 30 per cent increase in property crime.

Outdoor events planned by the Osborne Village BIZ, which were rained out and postponed until later this summer, were scheduled with safety in mind, said the organization’s executive director.

“The community really wanted Canada Day programming,” Zohreh Gervais said Monday morning. “Security concerns are one of those things that any event planner has to keep in mind and making sure that everybody feels safe is the number one priority for us.”

An outdoor concert and family games was restricted to the neighbourhood’s bell tower because of its small size as to not draw huge crowds, Gervais said.

Winnipeg police didn’t allocate more units for the area during the day’s festivities, though there is a general, increased presence in the neighbourhood owing to the Winnipeg Police Service’s violent crime and retail theft initiative.

“We are aware that those celebrations sometimes may bring on some people that are there for other reasons, (but) because of the presence of police we anticipate that those are held to a minimum and people are able to celebrate freely and without danger,” said WPS spokesperson Cst. Claude Chancy.

Mid-afternoon on Monday, undercover police cruisers and uniformed officers could be seen patrolling the multi-block main drag of Osborne Street while patrons ducked in and out of bars and restaurants.

Despite the sparse traffic downtown, music hummed and maple leaf flags flapped in the wind from the patio at the Osborne Village Taphouse.

Canada Day is usually one the pub’s busiest days, next to Halloween and New Year’s Eve, said kitchen manager Edwin Cheung. Since the heightened presence of police in the area, he’s noticed a marked decrease in violent incidents near the pub, he added.

“It’s a very good impact for the community,” he said.

Viveiros agreed that more officers on foot has made an impact in the area, but maintained there’s strength in numbers.

“Who wants to come in, walk around and get hit up or stabbed or assaulted or chased?” he said.

Gervais wanted to revive the event for this year’s holiday but permits didn’t pass due to construction in the southern part of the village.

Cheung says he’s happy with celebrations in the village, big or small.

“It doesn’t matter. If people come in the village because of some festival or event, then that will bring people in.”

nicole.buffie@freepress.mb.ca