What’s in store for the Seine River in 2016?

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 21/03/2016 (3455 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The City of Winnipeg tabled its preliminary budget for 2016 on March 2. Here are a few initiatives that will have a direct impact on the Seine River:

• Sentier Gabriel Dufault Pathway — If you visit Seine River Haven, you may notice an old sign announcing a future Seine River Trail. The 2016 budget identifies funding to create a new path on the west side of the Seine River north of John Bruce Drive.

When completed, the trail will overlook the site where Louis Riel Sr. and Benjamin Lagimodière built a mill on the Seine River in the 1850s. The trail will cross the east end of lots 50 and 51. These two river lots were owned by the Riel family. In 2003, SOS advocated for this land to be designated as a historic site due to its provincial and national significance. The dream was to establish a small interpretive centre with a trail and footbridges. This project is one step toward this goal. The trail will enhance the city’s linear parkway system by improving public access to the Seine River.

• Seine River Aqueduct Crossing — The Shoal Lake aqueduct opened in 1919. The large pipe has carried drinking water 156 kilometres from Shoal Lake (on the Ontario-Manitoba border) to Winnipeg for almost 100 years. The aqueduct passes under the Seine River on its way to the McPhillips pumping station. The east riverbank at this crossing is unstable. Downslope movement of the bank has been recorded since 1997. Although this has not yet affected the pipe, the bank continues to move. This project will stabilize the riverbank before the pipe is compromised.

• Fermor Avenue Bridge — This project involves rehabilitation of the bridge over the Seine River and reconstruction of Fermor Avenue between St. Anne’s Road and Archibald Street. Preliminary design will begin in 2016. Construction is planned for 2018 and 2019.

This project presents an opportunity to link the trails north and south of Fermor. This will enhance the linear parkway system. The project may also improve the bridge site for the school groups that use this location for field trips each year.

Save Our Seine wishes to thank Brian Mayes and the City of Winnipeg for providing core funding for its operation in 2016.

SOS is currently recruiting a Summer Clean-up Coordinator and three or four Green Team River Keepers to keep the river clean and navigable (job postings are on the SOS web site at saveourseine.com).

Michele Kading is a community correspondent for St. Vital and the executive director of Save Our Seine.