Other Manitoba and Saskatchewan Developments

[esquire]

I'm sure it will happen some day, but there are a lot of stars that have to line up before it can happen. The immense cleanup costs will have to be justified by a high property value, and things just aren't there yet.

I don't see this as a bad thing though. Rather than developing for development's sake, it's better to wait until market demand is there to build something useful and impressive.

If you want an example, look at the old CN yards in Edmonton. They were ripped out in the early 90s at a time when downtown Ed was in its doldrums, as was the economy in general. The early developments were mostly crappy strip malls and wood-frame walkup apartments... the only highlight was the Grant McEwan campus. Contrast that with what's being built now, with downtown on the upswing... office towers and the new Oilers rink. I'd rather wait until there is a real and genuine market need for that land.

[Riverman]

Excellent.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5GIjCvRQKU

[rrskylar]

Originally Posted by Riverman

Excellent.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5GIjCvRQKU

Bang on!

[armorand93]

I'm rarely on here anymore... bu this caught my attention the other day:

http://www.steinbachonline.com/local...-new-scu-opens

Excitement is building among staff and customers of Steinbach Credit Union. Their new building is only about five months away from opening day. Chief Executive Officer Glenn Friesen says he can't wait to have all employees at one location. He adds construction is moving along well.

And also:
\
http://www.steinbachonline.com/local...d-in-steinbach

Steinbach city council has approved a subdivision plan for a new commercial area being opened up by a local developer. It is located on 50 acres along the west side of Highway #12, just north of Big Freight and will have 17 lots of various sizes. Mayor Chris Goertzen says council was unanimous in approving the plan.

"This was a number of years in the making when it comes to this subdivision. It's a large commercial area right at the edge of our city. It's the last major piece along the Highway #12 North commercial corridor. It's really good to see this come to fruition, to see the developer making this happen. There'll be a number of businesses that will locate there, there will be many people employed there and it will also help the city in added taxes so that we can continue to provide good services for our citizens."

[Komatiite]

It doesn't look it in the photo, but the new SCU is an absolute beast in person.

Not excited about the commercial plan though. I hate that format.

[Tacheguy]

Nice to see continuous job creation and employment growth in the Steinbach area and the Pembina triangle. A lot of it is based on manufacturing of various sorts and flies in the face of the "manufacturing is dead in Canada" mantra that you often hear.
Curious to understand the comment about format, if you could elaborate. Thanks.

[Riverman]

SCU makes a huge amount of money off old order Mennonites as they will not take any interest on money saved. Great deal for them!

[Simplicity]

Originally Posted by Tacheguy

Nice to see continuous job creation and employment growth in the Steinbach area and the Pembina triangle. A lot of it is based on manufacturing of various sorts and flies in the face of the "manufacturing is dead in Canada" mantra that you often hear.
Curious to understand the comment about format, if you could elaborate. Thanks.

I presume your earlier comment about certain historical reasons for manufacturing prowess has a lot to do with the Paraguayan Mennonites that continue to prosper in the area?

[Winnipeg Architect]

Originally Posted by Simplicity

I presume your earlier comment about certain historical reasons for manufacturing prowess has a lot to do with the Paraguayan Mennonites that continue to prosper in the area?

What about the Mexican Mennonites?????

[Tacheguy]

Originally Posted by Simplicity

I presume your earlier comment about certain historical reasons for manufacturing prowess has a lot to do with the Paraguayan Mennonites that continue to prosper in the area?

That is a big part of it Simplicity. Would be great to study how those communities manage to adapt and grow when nearby communities with the same resource endowments and similar demographics do not. I have my theories but others would be more expert on that.

Manufacturing in and around Winnipeg also benefitted greatly from waves on immigration and the entrepreneurial culture they brought and which lives on today. Then farms shed labour and people who knew how to fix things and tinker moved to winnipeg. Many started companies bashing metal, machining, farm implements etc. many others became employed in industry and provided high quality labour. As well, Winnipeg was the only major urban center in western Canada until say the nineteen fifties, early sixties. So there were urban agglomeration benefits from that. Three railways meet here which is unique between vancouver and Toronto I believe. If you look at the origins of the great exporting companies we have here you will see their roots were modest and they grew organically. Of course it doesn't hurt when a Boeing plant locates here as a result of a federal industrial offset.
Anyways that was then and this is now. It will be interesting to see how we make out in areas such as biotech, nanotechnology, gaming, artificial intelligence etc. hopefully some of our traditional strengths will carry over.
By the way, I could have sworn the Mennonites were from The Soviet Union

[Simplicity]

Originally Posted by Tacheguy

That is a big part of it Simplicity. Would be great to study how those communities manage to adapt and grow when nearby communities with the same resource endowments and similar demographics do not. I have my theories but others would be more expert on that.

Manufacturing in and around Winnipeg also benefitted greatly from waves on immigration and the entrepreneurial culture they brought and which lives on today. Then farms shed labour and people who knew how to fix things and tinker moved to winnipeg. Many started companies bashing metal, machining, farm implements etc. many others became employed in industry and provided high quality labour. As well, Winnipeg was the only major urban center in western Canada until say the nineteen fifties, early sixties. So there were urban agglomeration benefits from that. Three railways meet here which is unique between vancouver and Toronto I believe. If you look at the origins of the great exporting companies we have here you will see their roots were modest and they grew organically. Of course it doesn't hurt when a Boeing plant locates here as a result of a federal industrial offset.
Anyways that was then and this is now. It will be interesting to see how we make out in areas such as biotech, nanotechnology, gaming, artificial intelligence etc. hopefully some of our traditional strengths will carry over.
By the way, I could have sworn the Mennonites were from The Soviet Union

Ha! Yeah. That was where they learned to be the owners of production instead of the means for it

But to your comment as for why things are different, whatever combination of initial hard luck being forced from the Soviet Union and the difficulties required of settling as essential outcasts in South American locales where they didn't look the part or speak the language has made them some of the hardest working people you'll ever meet. They also have an immense commitment to their communities. Definitely a Canadian success story.

[VANRIDERFAN]

Originally Posted by Tacheguy

By the way, I could have sworn the Mennonites were from The Soviet Union

Actually the Russian Mennonites came to Canada in two waves; 1870's when the Tsar was beginning to renege on Tsarina Catherine's promise not to conscript the men into the military (this was the promise that brought them from Western Europe to the Crimea region in the first place). This first group were the poor and landless members of the sect. The second group came in the 1920's shortly after the Bolsheviks seized their lands after the revolution.

[rrskylar]

Originally Posted by Riverman

SCU makes a huge amount of money off old order Mennonites as they will not take any interest on money saved. Great deal for them!

it's not like anyone else is getting interest on money saved nowadays either!

[Riverman]

Originally Posted by rrskylar

it's not like anyone else is getting interest on money saved nowadays either!

Interest, change in value, DRIPs, lots of ways to make money. Just gotta do it!

[Stormer]

Regina Beach continued its project to rebuild the historic Main Street Pier after it was destroyed in the flood of 2011. Note the addition of the day slips on the protected east side. These were well used last summer and really gave a cool look to the pier especially when there were large cruisers moored there. The pier is much wider and can accommodate amenities such as vendors and food sellers. It will continue to be a favourite fishing spot. This along with the completely rebuilt Regina Beach Yacht Club (also destroyed in 2011) down the beach, make for a revitalized waterfront. Memories will be back again this summer at the RBYC to manage the food and beverage. There may be additional opportunities for non-members to use the RBYC F&B at certain non-peak times.

The Town has constructed a lookout tower at the pier this winter as they complete construction of the pier for this summer. The tower was paid for by donations from the prominent Barber family of Regina Beach. As such it will be affectionately known as the "Barber Pole". It should become a local landmark.


http://www.panoramio.com/photo/113236576





https://www.facebook.com/RBYachtClub...type=1&theater

[Komatiite]

Originally Posted by Tacheguy

Curious to understand the comment about format, if you could elaborate. Thanks.

I am simply referring to the phenomenon I have seen in a handful of small cities (Steinbach and Yorkton immediately come to mind) where suburban/exurban commercial development is taking precedent over the traditional main street strip. In Steinbach, for example, a city councillor was urged by a business owner to support abandoning Main Street in favour of this kind of development. While I cannot comment on the viability of this phenomenon - it could certainly be possible that it provides a net benefit to a small town - it's not something I enjoy and it conflicts with the reason I chose to live in Steinbach in the first place. I now dread getting groceries because I have to fight more traffic and more traffic lights, whereas before I could just walk or bike to the store.

Edit: I was having internet issues the first time around, but here is the relevant article: Councillor Penner Defends Downtown Commitment

Steinbach city councillor Susan Penner has offered a rigorous defence of the city's commitment to the downtown area. She made the comments after a recent conversation with two business people who told her the city should let the Main Street area decline so that Highway #12 could become the new downtown. Penner adds the pair also objected to the multiplex being developed downtown. She says there are a lot of reasons to keep Steinbach's core area strong.

[esquire]

^ "Handful of small cities"? Abandoning Main Street in favour of outlying new commercial strips has been the default choice in every Manitoba town I can think of with enough economic activity and growth to support it. In small towns, getting rid of the storefront grocery store in favour of a Co-op supermarket on the edge of town is a symbol of progress.

The end result is the downtowns that were pretty vibrant places until about 30 years ago now dying a slow death as the action bleeds out to the fringes... I'm thinking of Portage, Dauphin, Selkirk, Steinbach, even Brandon... just about any place with more than a couple thousand people. The sad thing is that some of dying downtowns were/are pretty awesome places with a lot of potential. A small town with a thriving downtown is going to stand out a lot more than one with a decaying mess with a bunch of big boxes out on the highway.

[Komatiite]

I was trying not to overstate the issue, in keeping with just a couple examples I could easily substantiate. More or less I agree with your assessment.

[blueandgoldguy]

Conference Board of Canada predicts Manitoba will be near or at the top among Canadian provinces for economic growth over the next few years.

2.9% growth for Manitoba this year compared to 1.8% for the rest of the country.
0.8% growth for Saskatchewan.

2016 looks even better -Manitoba forecasted to have 3% growth to lead the country.

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/bus...urce=d-tiles-4

[Stormer]

Originally Posted by blueandgoldguy

Conference Board of Canada predicts Manitoba will be near or at the top among Canadian provinces for economic growth over the next few years.

2.9% growth for Manitoba this year compared to 1.8% for the rest of the country.
0.8% growth for Saskatchewan.

2016 looks even better -Manitoba forecasted to have 3% growth to lead the country.

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/bus...urce=d-tiles-4

Saskatchewan's and Alberta's situation will be much worse than indicated as the real GDP numbers do not take into account the price drop in oil, just the decrease in production and drilling.