Units would hug transit corridor
Winnipeg Free Press
Tuesday September 21 2004
By Mary Agnes Welch
A Winnipeg developer wants to build condos, apartments and houses worth $100 million next to a proposed rapid transit corridor through the old Fort Rouge rail yards.
Redview Development president Ken Douma, who helped build Oakwood Estates in North Kildonan, hopes to build about 1,375 affordable housing units on a narrow, 25-acre strip of land that runs beside the proposed rapid transit corridor between Brandon and Jubilee avenues.
City council will consider a zoning change tomorrow that would let the Redview proposal proceed.
The project could face a setback, however, if city council votes next week to postpone the $50-million rapid transit corridor and spend the money on community centres instead.
Even if rapid transit is postponed indefinitely, Douma said he would still go ahead with his project.
But a speedy bus corridor complete with bike paths, walkways and some nifty stations lends itself to high-density development such as condos and much-needed apartments. Those are generally seen as more progressive forms of urban infill than single-family homes, and would answer the city's long-term need for housing for seniors and empty-nesters. "Rapid transit would make it a nicer development, no doubt about it," said Douma. "To make a city grow, you probably need fast transit."
Lord Roberts already has great community clubs, parks, schools and easy access to downtown, though it's often overlooked.
"This neighbourhood's a sleeper," said Douma.
The area's councillor, rapid transit booster Jenny Gerbasi, fears the future of the infill development will be in jeopardy if council sides with Mayor Sam Katz and postpones rapid transit.
"This massive development is linked to rapid transit," said Gerbasi. "We are really risking a huge economic loss to the city's tax base if rapid transit doesn't succeed. This isn't chump change."
Douma estimates the project, if it goes ahead, will be worth $100 million, substantially more than the much-touted condo projects along Waterfront Drive. Douma wants to model the neighbourhood after "Railtown" in Edmonton's downtown, which is a mix of shops, parkland and Victorian-style carriage houses, townhouses and condos.
Tomorrow morning, council will consider amending Plan Winnipeg, the city's long-term urban blueprint, to designate the old rail lands available for neighbourhood development. That triggers public hearings, council votes, a series of reports by city staff and the development of a more detailed layout for the new neighbourhood.
Douma is hoping to begin construction next summer, though he is still talking with possible building partners and the city.
He bought the unused land recently from CN Rail, which has scaled back its operations in the Fort Rouge yard since the 1960s.