Your forecast
Mainly cloudy with a 60 per cent chance of flurries. Blowing snow at times. Wind from the northwest 40 km/h gusting to 60. Temperature falling to -16 C this afternoon. Wind chill -23 this morning and -29 this afternoon. Risk of frostbite.
Schools in some divisions may be closed today, or are experiencing delays in school bus service, or are advising caution for drivers dropping off students because of icy conditions. See this map of school divisions in Manitoba and click on the division to see any announcements or warnings.
What’s happening today
📖 An Evening of Sherlock Holmes takes place tonight at 6:30 p.m. at Dalnavert Museum and Visitor’s Centre, 61 Carlton St. Enjoy a reading of the Sherlock Holmes story The Adventure of the Speckled Band. Tickets available online.
Today’s must-read
Dan Beauvais, Westminster United Church’s janitor, jokes that after a life of mischief he’s atoning by spending more than 40 hours a week in a house of worship.
And just because the 110-year-old church hasn’t hosted a service in its beautifully late-Gothic sanctuary in more than three years, that doesn’t mean he’s in want of things to do — from maintaining the building’s boilers and fire-detection systems to general cleaning and snow removal.
But the building’s biggest upkeep issue will need more than Beauvais’s sweat to fix. The general public isn’t allowed into the sanctuary because, to put it melodramatically, the roof might cave in.
Millions of dollars in interventions are needed to repair the roof and ceiling, owing to moisture problems. It’s a lot for Westminster’s dedicated staff, volunteers and community to grapple with, and at the moment weekly services are hosted in the church’s lecture hall.
If a church requires renovations that exceed their projected revenue for several years, it can create an existential crisis. Conrad Sweatman has the story.
Longtime Westminster United Church caretaker Dan Beauvais knows every nook, crack and cranny of one of Winnipeg’s most prominent churches. (Ruth Bonneville / Free Press)
On the bright side
Fewer empty storefronts, dozens of new apartment units and more foot patrols are fuelling optimism among some Osborne Village business owners, after efforts to address crime and safety were stepped up last year.
Safety was a big concern for a long time in the neighbourhood, said Zohreh Gervais, executive director of the Osborne Village Business Improvement Zone.
“We’ve seen quite a lot of progress on that front, which has been really encouraging,” she said Thursday while visiting businesses with Mayor Scott Gillingham. “Obviously, there’s still stuff that happens, but overall it’s been feeling a lot better in the Village.” Chris Kitching has more here.
Winnipeg Mayor Scott Gillingham chats with Osborne Village Biz Executive Director Zohreh Gervais as they walk along Osborne Street. (Ruth Bonneville / Free Press)
On this date
On Jan. 16, 1975: The Winnipeg Free Press reported a senior official in the Manitoba health department said individual provinces would still be able to obtain foreign physicians if staffing levels warranted in their areas; this came after a federal-provincial health-care conference in Ottawa where it was decided unanimously to restrict immigration of foreign doctors to Canada unless they had a job waiting for them. Search our archives for more here.
Today’s front page
Get the full story: Read today’s e-edition of the Free Press.
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