City, developer square off at appeal hearing over massive Lemay Forest assisted-living facility proposal

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This article was published 11/02/2025 (211 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A controversial assisted-living facility proposed for Lemay Forest is far too large for the site, so a provincial board should uphold a decision to reject it, City of Winnipeg officials argued Tuesday.

“It proposes quadrupling the population of the neighbourhood,” Kalyn Bomback, the city’s lawyer, told the Manitoba Municipal Board.

Tochal Development Group wants to build a 5,000-bed, 2,500-unit facility at the urban forest in St. Norbert. The proposal has been strongly opposed by some residents.

City council rejected the project in September, declaring it too large for the site, but the developer appealed that decision to the Municipal Board, which began hearing the matter Tuesday.

Bomback said officials would raise evidence that shows the project is inconsistent with city policies and the character of the neighbourhood surrounding it.

“(It’s) a decision which the city states is correct, a decision which is reasonable and a decision that ought not to be interfered with,” she said.

Daniel Iskierski, the city’s downtown planner, said the project would substantially boost the neighbourhood’s population.

“I would not consider this moderate…. Going from 700 units in the entire neighbourhood to adding 2,500 (more)… would not be contextually sensitive and compatible with the surrounding neighbourhood,” said Iskierski.

The developer’s lawyer, Kevin Toyne, said the proposal does comply with city rules and should be approved.

He said the plan would also meet a city goal to add homes that let residents “age in place.”

In an interview before his presentation at the hearing, the project’s planner said the facility would create infill homes where they would benefit the city most.

“It’s… within 800 metres of a rapid transit frequent stop, 800 metres of a grocery store, it’s contiguous to an existing neighbourhood…. This is where we want to densify place,” said John Wintrup.

He said the city has increased its density targets over the years, which should continue.

“Every layer of density laid onto the City of Winnipeg is usually slightly bigger… than what was there before. We’re a growing city and we’re growing up,” he said.

In his presentation to the Municipal Board, Wintrup said the private land contains about 17 acres of trees, which the developer will not preserve regardless of the final decision on the project.

“The land owner has no interest in preserving trees and will make productive use of their property,” he said.

Several dozen people attended the hearing.

The appeal follows more than a year of impassioned debate over the future of the south Winnipeg forest, which has triggered hours of discussion at city hall and several legal challenges.

Many residents have fought to preserve the privately owned forest, arguing it is an important animal habitat and popular greenspace destination.

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Additional concerns centre around potential unmarked graves from a former Catholic orphanage at the site, where hundreds of infants died, including some Métis children. Some opponents of the project fear there’s a lack of research about how many graves are located in the area.

Tochal Development Group has committed to create a buffer zone around the area suspected to contain graves.

The Municipal Board is required to make an order within 60 days of the end of the hearing, which was scheduled to continue Wednesday. The order will be considered final and binding upon the city.

joyanne.pursaga@freepress.mb.ca

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Joyanne Pursaga
Reporter

Joyanne is city hall reporter for the Winnipeg Free Press. A reporter since 2004, she began covering politics exclusively in 2012, writing on city hall and the Manitoba Legislature for the Winnipeg Sun before joining the Free Press in early 2020. Read more about Joyanne.

Every piece of reporting Joyanne produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.