Developer frustrated with lengthy process
Lack of clarity, consistency among property owner’s concerns
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This article was published 17/01/2020 (2118 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
A multi-family development on Peguis Street has been generating a lot of controversy since it was first proposed in 2017. But the property owner says he’s just trying to build someplace that people can call home.
“I’m trying my best to make this area better,” Zekarias Worku, who owns the 22,302-square-foot lot on the west side of Peguis Street south of Almey Avenue, told The Herald. “If we bring something good, a home for 24 families, what is bad?”
Worku purchased the property in 2014, 12 years after he arrived in Winnipeg as a refugee from his home country of Ethiopia. In 2015, he applied to rezone the property for commercial use, proposing to build a “boutique” car wash. The East Kildonan-Transcona (EKT) community committee rejected the proposal, which did not have the backing of city planners.
At that time, Worku went back to the drawing board. Having successfully completed a couple of small multifamily buildings in Point Douglas, Worku and his team proposed a six-storey, 43-unit multi-family dwelling and applied to rezone the property accordingly. City planners approved of the project, noting it was consistent with the West Transcona area plan and other developments along Peguis Street.
“On Peguis Street, you see big condominiums and apartments, so we thought a six-storey, 43-unit building would fit,” Worku said.
In November 2017, the EKT community committee rejected the proposal, which faced vocal opposition from a group of residents of Almey Avenue, who cited its size and scale, impact on parking and traffic, and loss of privacy among their concerns.
Worku and his team came back with a proposal for a three-storey, 24-unit development. While the new proposal was smaller in scope than other multi-family developments in the area, the same Almey Avenue residents opposed it again.
In June 2018, the EKT community committee approved the application after setting the maximum building height at 36 feet and limiting the number of units to 20, along with a number of other restrictions.
“The entire west side of the property was to not be used for anything, completely landscaped, which I would say would have been 25 to 30 per cent of the land, just wasted,” Worku said. “But we have no choice, this is the system.”
The standing policy committee for development and housing approved the application after removing the landscaping requirement. At that point, Worku said he was ready to proceed with the project. Then he received a bill from the City for the property’s development improvements service share, which included upgrades along Peguis Street.
“We prepared, assuming there would be some costs,” Worku said. “Our budget was $80,000. The bill was $358,000. I was shocked.”
Worku, who added that the costs are calculated by frontage rather than density, does not believe he was properly consulted or notified regarding costs and does not feel that the current system is fair.
In an attempt to mitigate the costs of the bill, Worku applied to make an amendment to the development agreement for his property, pushing again for an allowance of 24 units rather than 20.
“We have tried to bring the size down here, and put every quality thing into this building: an elevator, indoor parking, a beautiful design,” Worku said, adding that a four-storey, mixed use project was recently approved on a similar sized lot on the west side of Peguis to the north of Almey. “We want it to be just a little nicer than a regular multi-family apartment, to make it appealing. And the neighbours are still not convinced.”
City planners approved of the changes. But again, residents opposed the application at a Nov. 12, 2019 EKT community committee meeting, and councillors voted against the requested changes.
“There seems to be so much anger directed to this site, but for this area, this is modest,” Ross Mitchell, a former city planner who is working with Worku, said when speaking in support of the project at the Nov. 12 hearing. “(But) this is the highest, best use of the property. We believe this modest apartment building, in scale, is in keeping with urban design of Peguis Street. It’s a good compromise.”
However, on Jan. 6, members of the standing policy committee on property and development, heritage, and downtown development chose to disregard the EKT community committee’s directive, voting 3-1 to support the city planner’s recommendation to approve the project at 24 units. The decision left Transcona city councillor Shawn Nason and the neighbours who have opposed the project frustrated and disappointed.
“We feel that we are not being heard and that there is no compromise with the City,” Judy Burym, who lives next door to Worku’s property, told The Herald. “We have to live here.”
With the approval of the standing policy committee on property and development, heritage, and downtown development, final approval by the executive policy committee and city council is required before the project can move forward. Worku said the five-year process to develop his property has not only cost him much more than he originally bargained for, but has left him feeling disenchanted with the entire process.
“The councilors are not impartial, but they have the decision-making power,” Worku said. “This process has to be revised. It has to be. Someone should step in to revise this process. We need the field to be level and fair for everybody. There needs to be consistency in decisions.”
Sheldon Birnie
Community Journalist
Sheldon Birnie is a reporter/photographer for the Free Press Community Review. The author of Missing Like Teeth: An Oral History of Winnipeg Underground Rock (1990-2001), his writing has appeared in journals and online platforms across Canada, the U.S. and the U.K. A husband and father of two young children, Sheldon enjoys playing guitar and rec hockey when he can find the time. Email him at sheldon.birnie@freepress.mb.ca Call him at 204-697-7112
Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber.
Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
Sheldon Birnie
Community Journalist
Sheldon Birnie is a reporter/photographer for the Free Press Community Review. The author of Missing Like Teeth: An Oral History of Winnipeg Underground Rock (1990-2001), his writing has appeared in journals and online platforms across Canada, the U.S. and the U.K. A husband and father of two young children, Sheldon enjoys playing guitar and rec hockey when he can find the time. Email him at sheldon.birnie@freepress.mb.ca Call him at 204-697-7112
Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber.
Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
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