St. Vital Centre changes hands for $160.5M

Montreal-based real estate investment and development firm Leyad says it has purchased the St. Vital Centre for $160.5 million.

“This acquisition embodies everything we look for in a community shopping centre,” said Henry Zavriyev, president of Leyad, in a news release Thursday night. “St. Vital Centre is dominant in its market, anchored by essential retail, deeply embedded in the daily lives of the community, and positioned for many decades of continued success.

“We are proud to become its long-term steward.”

The transaction was financed through a syndicated loan provided by six leading credit unions, according to the release.

Former Winnipeg mayor ‘offended and disappointed’ by bribe allegations

Former mayor Sam Katz says he’s deeply hurt by allegations he accepted a bribe from the key construction company in the over budget Winnipeg Police Service headquarters project, stating those accusations are “definitely not” true.

“I’m offended and disappointed … I take great offence to it. To me, the key thing in life is your reputation and your credibility,” said Katz.

One of the most highly anticipated witnesses at the public inquiry into the headquarters saga, the former politician was only person to answer questions throughout Thursday’s hearing.

Near the end of the session, lawyer Danny Gunn, who is representing Katz at the inquiry, asked his client how he felt about the accusation following his 10 years as mayor, which stretched from 2004 to 2014.

Province to power up smart thermostat program, rebates

Manitobans may get cash for turning down the thermostat during peak energy-use periods next winter.

Reliable United Way funding bolsters family programs in the community

On a sharply cold January afternoon, the North End Women’s Centre drop-in is bustling. Women bundled in parkas trundle in the Selkirk Avenue entrance to check in for counselling appointments or ask to use the phone, or inquire about the centre’s supports to help families meet their basic needs.

Other guests are here for the camaraderie. On couches in the sunny main room, five women relax with a cup of coffee, chatting about life and half-watching Schitt’s Creek re-runs on the big-screen TV. A staff member breezes in to the lounge, squeezing past the jam of visitors in the narrow entrance, and makes one last call for the day’s workshop.

“Is anyone else going to come into the group?” she says, brightly. “We’re doing the wellness program today.”

The immediate impression of the centre, on this average weekday, is one of constant motion. Upstairs in her office, executive director Cynthia Drebot chuckles: there’s never a dull moment, she agrees. As we chat, staff downstairs calmly tend to a visitor who is dipping out of consciousness, likely due to drug intake.

Kildonan Place’s $30M food court redevelopment to add seats, vendors, new mall entryway

A long-awaited, $30-million renovation of Kildonan Place’s food court has finally begun.