Winnipeggers up in arms as wait for compensation ruling stretches nearly two years amid airline regulator’s 88,000-case backlog

Winnipeg resident Doug Marks turned to Canada’s airline regulator when WestJet denied his compensation claim for a cancelled return flight from Palm Springs, Calif., in March 2024.

He’s been waiting nearly two years for the Canadian Transportation Agency to rule if he and his wife, Vicky, are owed compensation thanks to a backlog that has grown to more than 88,000 complaints.

“We’re still in the queue. That’s all they will tell me,” he said. “They initially said it will take up to 18 months, but it’s been almost two years. The frustration levels I’m getting now are almost through the roof.”

Marks said he’s being given the same answers as when he filed a complaint with the agency, an independent, quasi-judicial tribunal that settles disputes between travellers and airlines.

It’s deja vu for opponents of proposed housing development near riverside ‘oasis’ in 2018

A property developer has come full-circle in a proposal to build an apartment near a historic park in south Winnipeg, frustrating some nearby residents who fought against the plan in 2018.

Progressive Real Estate Group is asking the city to allow construction of a four-storey apartment building located near Henteleff Park on St. Mary’s Road.

The developer approached the city with the idea about eight years ago, but changed the proposal after residents raised concerns over the height of the buildings and population density. In response, it agreed to build a smaller, two-storey apartment and townhouses.

The city approved that plan in 2018 and the project appeared set to proceed, but the developer has now reversed course and amended its proposal to again feature a larger building.

Fire chief defends response time to fatal Nassau Street blaze

Winnipeg’s fire chief is defending the emergency response to a fatal house fire on Nassau Street Monday after a union official predicted more tragedies unless the city increases firefighter numbers.

On Wednesday, Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service Chief Christian Schmidt said while the full complement of vehicles arrived at the scene within 16 minutes, the first crew got to the burning home at 1:10 p.m., just six minutes after receiving the call.

‘Keep your car bare’: Scourge of theft from vehicles hits hard for many Winnipeggers

Peter Dul is frustrated.

The 57-year-old has had the windows of his vehicle smashed seven times in the past two years when it was parked in a stall outside his Norwood neighbourhood apartment.

“I keep getting either my driver’s window or passenger window smashed out and they just rummage through the glove box,” said Dul, the owner of Duly Records on Portage Avenue.

“They keep coming back and doing it over and over again.”

Seven years after disappearance, mother continues to search for missing son’s remains

BRANDON — Fear, panic, disbelief and pain.

Kelly Lavallee was consumed by those emotions when her son, Dwayne, disappeared in 2018 at age 21.

Lavallee continues to seek answers more than seven years later.

“Not having any answers is a different kind of grief. There’s no closure, no clear ending, just constant wondering,” she said. “Our family was forever changed.”

How the new year will affect your pocketbook

The arrival of 2026 will herald changes to rates and taxes for Manitobans.

A four per cent Manitoba Hydro rate increase takes effect on Jan. 1. The interim rate hike was announced Tuesday by the Public Utilities Board in response to the Crown utility’s drought-related losses and its need to maintain, upgrade and expand the power grid.

“It is an understandable response from Hydro’s regulator to send a message that the drought is being taken seriously,” the Consumers Coalition said in an email Wednesday.

A four per cent rate increase in hydro rates will be challenging for many consumers who have to make difficult choices alongside the rising cost of other essentials, said the coalition that represents Manitoba Harvest, the Aboriginal Centre of Winnipeg, the Manitoba branch of the Consumers Association of Canada, and the Manitoba Seniors Equity Action Coalition.

Frustration over lengthy landline outage

Peter Kostiuk and other tenants of a south Winnipeg condo building remained without functional landlines for more than a month after a telecommunications cable was inadvertently damaged, cutting service to thousands of Bell MTS customers.

Main Street strip’s Manwin Hotel remains vacant, boarded up a year after city ordered it closed

The Manwin Hotel in downtown Winnipeg remains vacant nearly one year after the city ordered its residents out, leaving another building on the Main Street strip at risk of fire and vandalism.

The hotel at 655 Main St. was briefly listed for sale earlier this year before it expired, agent Brad Gross told the Free Press.

Gross said building owner Akim Kambamba had some issues with the building he wanted to take care of before relisting the property. The agent did not disclose what the issues were.

The city ordered residents to leave last January amid multiple outstanding permit requirements and compliance orders.