City Unfriendly to Upper Fort Garry
Mar 20, 2008
fort, garry,, heritage, upper, winnipeg,
The ongoing debate about the future of the Upper Fort Garry site took another important step recently as Winnipeg City Council denied Councillor Dan Vandal’s motion to extend the time given to the group trying to raise funds to develop the location of the birthplace of Winnipeg into an interpretive centre.
By upholding its earlier decision to give the Friends of Upper Fort Garry until March 31 to raise the necessary funds – approximately $10 million – City Hall has pretty much signaled the death knell for this project, at least in its original form. Councillor Dan Vandal has made a valiant effort to get the deadline extended but it appears that City Hall is prepared to make yet another short-sighted decision with regard to the development of downtown Winnipeg.
As per the terms of the original deal, if the group does not raise the requisite funding and meet other conditions set out by the City’s Downtown Development Committee, part of the land in question will be sold to a developer for the building of a highrise residential complex adjacent to the Fort as it currently stands. So now the Friends of Upper Fort Garry have about until March 31 to raise $3.4 million if they want to prevent an apartment building from going up next to what was the birthplace of Winnipeg.
Some debate the cost of the proposed plan for the interpretive centre or even the value of maintaining the present Fort site itself as it currently stands. But if a commercial development and a historical site cannot coexist adjacent to one another – and this doesn’t seem to be a realistic option for some reason – can one really argue that the condo development should trump a fort that was built in 1835 and helped open Manitoba up to settlement?
We live in an age when commercial development abounds. The current administration at City Hall has gone on record as being open to giving naming rights to the private sector for public amenities. But just how far will this spread? Should we not be concerned that efforts to appeal to Winnipeg’s business community will go too far and compromise the integrity of our public services and institutions? Perhaps there is an opportunity for the Friends and the developer of the proposed apartment complex to reach some sort of agreement. It would be a shame if nothing were to come of this admirable effort to preserve and enhance this vital symbol of Winnipeg’s history.
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Why didn't anyone complain when the gas station was being built.....or when they demo'd most of the fort to build main st. ?
jimcotton - 2008-03-21 21:35