EPC unanimously approves housing next to curling club, with condition to work out parking agreement

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This article was published 18/02/2025 (200 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A controversial plan to build affordable housing next to the Granite Curling Club is moving forward, with a compromise that aims to ensure the club can access enough parking to carry on.

On Tuesday, city council’s executive policy committee voted unanimously to approve a plan that would see a 111-unit residential building constructed on a parking lot at 22 Granite Way, with 51 per cent of the suites to have affordable rent for 99 years.

“I believe we can come up with a solution. There will be curling at the Granite Curling Club for years to come. I’m confident of that and so this is a good motion… where we can have curling co-existing with housing that’s affordable,” said Mayor Scott Gillingham.

EPC approved the project’s subdivision and rezoning application after adding in a new requirement that city officials work out a parking plan with the club that can sustain its operations before issuing a development permit. That deal would need to satisfy directors of the city’s public works and planning, property and development departments, if it’s approved in a final council vote.

“This is a situation where there can be wins all around and we can find solutions that work for everybody. I’m very confident of that,” said Gillingham.

The plan has faced a mixed public response so far.

Several executive members of the curling club oppose the project, predicting it would cost the long-standing club more than half its parking stalls and render it no longer viable. The Granite building was constructed in 1912, while the club itself formed in 1880, according to a city heritage report.

Meanwhile, others have stressed that there’s an urgent need to build the proposed affordable homes.

Earlier this month, council’s property and development committee cast a 2-2 vote on the proposal, which saw it move forward without a recommendation. The same parking compromise was considered but councillors on that committee couldn’t agree on key details, with some stressing the curling club itself should have more power to determine the parking agreement.

Christian Pierce, secretary of the Granite Curling Club’s board, said the EPC vote fails to address that concern.

“It’s subject to the satisfaction of the city…. The city needing to sign off on their own plans does little, in practical terms, to ensure the Granite’s concerns will be adequately addressed,” said Pierce.

He said the club risks losing many members if parking becomes scarce. A petition against building the housing project on the parking lot attracted 1,000 signatures, including 600 of the club’s members, said Pierce. Of the current members, a significant number shared that they would end their memberships if they could no longer find parking at the facility, he said.

“We’ve been trying to get a deal in place for months now and that just hasn’t happened,” said Pierce.

He said the curling club needs its current number of parking spaces and would prefer to secure a new long-term lease of its city-owned facility and finalize a revenue-sharing deal from the proposed development before it is approved.

When asked how the parking concerns could be addressed, Gillingham said the exact details have yet to be worked out, though he noted city staff have said a potential agreement could involve nearby parking at the Canada Life building.

Pierce said that company is a “great neighbour” but doesn’t appear interested in a formal parking agreement.

“I’m of the view this is the city’s problem to resolve, not a third-party private company,” he said.

Pierce was also critical of the city’s process to approve the housing project, stating the University of Winnipeg Community Renewal Corp. 2.0 was the only developer approached to pursue it.

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If council gives final approval to the project, the curling club will consider appealing that decision to the Manitoba Municipal Board, he said.

The development would create 55 housing units for rent at market rate and 56 affordable suites. Of the affordable units, 26 would have rents of less than 80 per cent of Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. median market rent. The remaining 30 would have rents geared to income, averaging about $400 to $500 per month.

Council is expected to vote on the project Feb. 27.

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.