Winnipeg Census: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

[bomberguy]

There's more and more Filipinos in Steinbach now. Is that the reason the city increased in population? If so.... that's awesome.

[Only The Lonely..]

Originally Posted by trueviking

i am not sure where you get this from.....the overwhelming majority of immigrants are from the phillipines and germany....none of these people are unskilled labourers....most of them live in suburban winnipeg in middle class neighbourhoods and contribute as much as anyone else...we have hired two phillipino architects in the last couple of years and they are great....we have also hired an argentinian architect who used the nominee programme to come here.

your misconception that our immigrants are refugees is way off the mark....there are strict requirements to emmigrate to manitoba....sure we take some refugees...but we should.

What about professional accreditation carrying over? It is unlikely that a Filipino with his architecture degree can readily ply his / her trade in Manitoba without jumping through significant loop holes.

The points about immigrants being hard workers, and good citizens are all valid and true.

However, I refuse to be cheerful about the NDP hiding its inability to create opportunity behind the banner of ‘Hey, at least people in Nigeria still want to live here…'

Having met the Premier and quite a few of other party ministers in person, I can say that it terrifies me that these people are in charge of our province.

[Only The Lonely..]

Also, it must be remembered that the Filipino community came here in the 1960's as cheap immigrant labour to work in the city's textile trade.

It took at least a generation before any of these people or their children realized any kind of economic success.

So yes, the immigrant population like any other is capable of achieving great things, but it takes a while for these people to acquire affluence.

The benefit of keeping our young people is that they are already educated and can easily acquire affluence, whereas it can take an immigrant community 10 -15 years to rise up in rank.

I'm not sure Winnipeg can afford to wait.

[IntotheWest]

Originally Posted by Only The Lonely..

Also, it must be remembered that the Filipino community came here in the 1960's as cheap immigrant labour to work in the city's textile trade.

It took at least a generation before any of these people or their children realized any kind of economic success.

So yes, the immigrant population like any other is capable of achieving great things, but it takes a while for these people to acquire affluence.

The benefit of keeping our young people is that they are already educated and can easily acquire affluence, whereas it can take an immigrant community 10 -15 years to rise up in rank.

I'm not sure Winnipeg can afford to wait.

What is the average age of Winnipeg now? And how does that compare nationally? I agree that more needs to be done to retain the young professionals - and the NDP are likely not focused on that.

Also, this may be a tougher one - how many of the grads from UofM, UofW, and RRCC start their careers in the Peg (or even MB for that matter)?

[hexrae]

Originally Posted by IntotheWest

Also, this may be a tougher one - how many of the grads from UofM, UofW, and RRCC start their careers in the Peg (or even MB for that matter)?

Here's a report, though a bit dated as it's based on the class of 2000: http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/050518/d050518e.htm
You can download the PDF here

[Greco Roman]

Originally Posted by IntotheWest

^When I went back in 03/04 for a project, one of my colleagues flying in was a phillipino living in OC, SoCal...once I showed him the city over the first few weeks were there, he was absolutely shocked (and pleased to see) the size of Winnipeg's filipino community. Of course, these folks that had never been to Canada before left about a year later very impressed with Winnipeg (okay, they didn't like January :-) It's great to see the immigration into Winnipeg.

Albertaboy - not sure what your slant is. Not everyone in Calgary looks down on the Peg. Not only did I spend 26 years there (plus an extra year and a bit after for a project), most of my family and best friends still live there. Winnipeg is holding it's own, and will continue to grow - maybe at a slower rate, but still grow and evolve. I (like several other forumers from Winnipeg) like to participate, and follow what is happening in Winnipeg - and for once, I'd like to do it without a trace of "Calgary" popping up in the posts...

It's not so much of a slant. What I am saying is that when you are in the better position, it is easier to look on the bright side. Trust me, I am having a rough semester this time, and those who are doing better than me are chanting "lighten up; it'll get better, blah blah blah". That kind of bugs me.

Maybe my opinion is a little jaded, but I'll feel better when things get better. That is the realist in me I guess.

[IntotheWest]

Originally Posted by Albertaboy

It's not so much of a slant. What I am saying is that when you are in the better position, it is easier to look on the bright side. Trust me, I am having a rough semester this time, and those who are doing better than me are chanting "lighten up; it'll get better, blah blah blah". That kind of bugs me.

Maybe my opinion is a little jaded, but I'll feel better when things get better. That is the realist in me I guess.

That's a bit presumptuous of you to think I'm in a "better position" - or by that, you mean because of being physically located in AB...which, then would be a dig at MB.

I ended up in Alberta by fluke years ago now - well before all this boom-stuff really took off. Winnipeg is a great city, and like you, and many others on here living elsewhere, it's still "home".

I understand you may be a little homesick or something (I'm assuming you're relatively new in AB), but you need understand my desire to participate in MB and Prairie forums, and not just Calgary/AB stuff - this is the greatness of the internet (and Forums).

Go Jets! ;-)

[ssiguy]

I love Winnipeg but there are two things it can't do anything about......the weather and mosquitos.
There is one thing that Winnipeg can and must get control over..........it crime rate. It is well known across the country that Winnipeg has a crime rate FAR higher than the national average.

[Pegger5]

You Winnipeggers should not forget that the only reason Alberta is doing so well is the Oil industry. Without this great commodity Alberta would be similiar to Saskatchewan. Take away the Oil Sands and we would all be be going back to our home provinces..
Calgary has done nothing special except collect money from a growning tax base. Stop thinking it is so rosy here. You have to spend $800,000K plus on a house to have trees like Winnipeg and with half the size yard.
Alberta spends half on the ARTS and CULTURE than what Manitoba does... I really miss live bands that are up and coming... Calgary is a cultural waistland compared to Winnipeg..
My wife is a lawyer and I do really well also but only because our jobs rely on direct and indirect business from the OIL and Gas industry... We never forget that! If you have an okay job, a nice house and go to the lake on the weekends. DON"T ever move here you will regret it. I know 3 ex-Winnipeg couples moving back this spring because life now has become more rosy in Winnipeg! They are cashing out on their house to go live mortgage free...

Be proud Winnipeg! You are # 5 in Head Offices in Canada (18) which also includes amount of HO employees. Edmonton has maybe 3...

One last thing, You are closer to Chicago, Minny, Milwaukee, St. Louis, Kansas City than Calgary or Edmonton is to Seattle. You have to fly everywhere from Alberta because it is too far to drive to a major city. No wonder the airports here do so well..

[newflyer]

Originally Posted by Pegger5

You Winnipeggers should not forget that the only reason Alberta is doing so well is the Oil industry. Without this great commodity Alberta would be similiar to Saskatchewan. Take away the Oil Sands and we would all be be going back to our home provinces..
Calgary has done nothing special except collect money from a growning tax base. Stop thinking it is so rosy here. You have to spend $800,000K plus on a house to have trees like Winnipeg and with half the size yard.
Alberta spends half on the ARTS and CULTURE than what Manitoba does... I really miss live bands that are up and coming... Calgary is a cultural waistland compared to Winnipeg..
My wife is a lawyer and I do really well also but only because our jobs rely on direct and indirect business from the OIL and Gas industry... We never forget that! If you have an okay job, a nice house and go to the lake on the weekends. DON"T ever move here you will regret it. I know 3 ex-Winnipeg couples moving back this spring because life now has become more rosy in Winnipeg! They are cashing out on their house to go live mortgage free...

Be proud Winnipeg! You are # 5 in Head Offices in Canada (18) which also includes amount of HO employees. Edmonton has maybe 3...

One last thing, You are closer to Chicago, Minny, Milwaukee, St. Louis, Kansas City than Calgary or Edmonton is to Seattle. You have to fly everywhere from Alberta because it is too far to drive to a major city. No wonder the airports here do so well..

You make very good points!! .... Alberta is much more of a cashgrab economy. I have also heard many planing to leave in 2007 or 08 ... the oil based economy. As time goes on cracks in the fasaud are showing. Infrastrcuture and been overwelmed .. and inflation is starting to take its toll.

Winnipeg's economy is starting to see some growth and with improving economic conditions this will continue. This is not to mention the amount of interesting projects on the horizon.... such as the nicest airport in the nation.. by far.

The posibility of a new staduim and a musuem of a worldly stature... coule be very nice additions to this city.

... and here is a kicker ... but I think weather is a big plus. At least 9 months of the year, is as good as anywhere in Canada... and probibly the nicest summer weather in the nation (warm and sunny.. no smog). Add to that miles and miles of the finiest white sand beaches around and you have one great city... especially if you have time to enjoy life. That means not working your back to the bone for a $400K mortage on a small house.

Sorry but Winnipeg has Calgary beat hands down.. expect for the oil... and the odd chinook.

[supai]

Hopefully Winnipeg can hang on to its head offices and they don't all end up in Calgary.

Edmonton has a lot more than 3 head offices. A lot of them are private corporations such as PCL. In any event here is a few of the larger ones:

EPCOR,
Canadian Western Bank
Alberta Treasury Branch
PCL
Stantec
Biomira
Matrikon
Peace Hills Trust


One thing I really like about Alberta is the mountains absolutley spectacular scenery especially from the top of a summit!!

[newflyer]

Originally Posted by supai

Hopefully Winnipeg can hang on to its head offices and they don't all end up in Calgary.


Edmonton has a lot more than 3 head offices. A lot of them are private corporations such as PCL. In any event here is a few of the larger ones:

EPCOR,
Canadian Western Bank
Alberta Treasury Branch
PCL
Stantec
Biomira
Matrikon
Peace Hills Trust


One thing I really like about Alberta is the mountains absolutley spectacular scenery especially from the top of a summit!!

I think he meant large publicly traded corporations.

Edmonton is more of an industrail and petro services support city .. not as much a corporate head office location.
Winnipeg has far more than Edmonton... and some major ones are:

Can West Global
Richardson and Sons
Great West Life
New Flyer Industries
Domo Gas
MTS / AllStream
Wellington West Capital
Wawanesa Insurance
North West Company
Artic Equipment Co-op
Investors Group (largest mutual fund company in Canada)
Buhler Industries
Mondetta Sports Wear
Motor Coach indutries
Agricore United
Standard Aero
Rogers western head office
Rice Financial
Canad Inns
Cargil
Monsanto Canada
Bison Transport
Nygard International
Kitchen Craft
Palliser Furniture
Riemer Express
Ben Moss Jewelers
Hudson Bay Mining Company
Ridley Inc.
Paterson Grain
Cangene Inc.
Arctic Glacier
FP Publications Inc.
Poineer Grain
Winnipeg Commodity Exchange
Man-Shield
Ceridian Canada
Creswin Inc.
MB Hydro
Ipos Reid
K-Tel
Golden West Media

... ect ect .. I am know I missed a bunch.

.. but as you can tell Winnipeg is miles ahead of Edmonton in head offices. These are not fly-by-night operations either, they have been established in Winnipeg for decades for the most part... I really doubt Calgary would have much to offer .. except jacked up office rates and no staff. As you can tell Winnipeg has a strong core of agriculture and transport companies with a good amount of media and bioscience. Calgary has very little in any of these fields. Infact I wouldn't be suprised in Agruim relocated to Winnipeg in the next few years. It is the centre of agriculture in Canada.

[SmileyBoy]

I have no idea why they undercounted again. I thought I heard somewhere that Winnipeg's metro was actually 715,000 or so. Even the city itself said that Winnipeg's city pop. is over 650,000 (closer to 660) now. Why does the Canadian census always undercount?? It seems to be the reverse here in the US - Our Census tends to overcount and our annual estimates undercount DRASTICALLY.

[Boreal]

As per what I heard from a UofM historian, the Winnipeg Free Press, and this board (from posters who would certainly be described as "reputable") 715,000 was the number tossed about and I would imagine that to be accurate. Anyways...

I know we are all very critical of Winnipeg, and for good reason. We want the best. We want Winnipeg to be the best, and quite frankly of all the mid-tier cities in Canada, no other even comes remotely close to touching Winnipeg's potential ...with all due respect to those cities.

With some good decisions at the civic office, which I, like Newflyer, think is in process of happening (yes, Katz lover, right here), we're slowly on our way.

It's easy to get caught up in what's wrong, or what does Calgary have that we don't, but in the end of the day, we have a heckuva a lot, that I wouldn't trade to move anywhere else in Canada. 2 of my 3 best friends and my girlfriend feel the same way. So 4 out of 5, or 80% of a small sample (possibly unreliable) are willing to do all things within reason to stay in the Manitoba capitol.

Why?
Well...

As already touched on, Winnipeg is NOT a business backwater. It MUST start to phase out the business tax, which it is doing, but long story short, there is opportunity here. Being so close to cottage country is amazing in the summer. The city is in and of itself, considering its size, a cultural mecca. I love it's multiculturalism, relative to other cities. I love the fact that Winnipeg has a (mildly) big city feel, but a small town sense of community. It seems like everybody indirectly knows everybody in this city. As a young person, the nightlife in Winnipeg is very, very good relative to many places. In all of chauvenisms proudest moments ...it has some of the prettiest girls in Canada, which of course is subjective, but who cares? Assiniboine Park, if zoo upgrades happen could be the crown jewel (yes, I'd put it ON PAR with The Forks). And speaking of The Forks, if all things go as planned, it will be phenomenal. Corydon and Osborne, and an up and coming Academy have lots of good stuff already, and loads of potential to become so much more. The Exchange is Winnipeg. In my humble opinion, that is out ticket to first-tier status so to speak.

I could go on and on, but long story short, as much as I like to criticize, it's nice to sit back and take a look at what plagues places like Toronto and Calgary (you know, the things they like to not talk about...) and rediscover your love for Winnipeg ...at least, that's what I do from time to time.

In honour of American neo-cons ...God Bless Winnipeg.

[Tower Crane]

Originally Posted by Jeff1987

As per what I heard from a UofM historian, the Winnipeg Free Press, and this board (from posters who would certainly be described as "reputable") 715,000 was the number tossed about and I would imagine that to be accurate. Anyways...

I know we are all very critical of Winnipeg, and for good reason. We want the best. We want Winnipeg to be the best, and quite frankly of all the mid-tier cities in Canada, no other even comes remotely close to touching Winnipeg's potential ...with all due respect to those cities.

With some good decisions at the civic office, which I, like Newflyer, think is in process of happening (yes, Katz lover, right here), we're slowly on our way.

It's easy to get caught up in what's wrong, or what does Calgary have that we don't, but in the end of the day, we have a heckuva a lot, that I wouldn't trade to move anywhere else in Canada. 2 of my 3 best friends and my girlfriend feel the same way. So 4 out of 5, or 80% of a small sample (possibly unreliable) are willing to do all things within reason to stay in the Manitoba capitol.

Why?
Well...

As already touched on, Winnipeg is NOT a business backwater. It MUST start to phase out the business tax, which it is doing, but long story short, there is opportunity here. Being so close to cottage country is amazing in the summer. The city is in and of itself, considering its size, a cultural mecca. I love it's multiculturalism, relative to other cities. I love the fact that Winnipeg has a (mildly) big city feel, but a small town sense of community. It seems like everybody indirectly knows everybody in this city. As a young person, the nightlife in Winnipeg is very, very good relative to many places. In all of chauvenisms proudest moments ...it has some of the prettiest girls in Canada, which of course is subjective, but who cares? Assiniboine Park, if zoo upgrades happen could be the crown jewel (yes, I'd put it ON PAR with The Forks). And speaking of The Forks, if all things go as planned, it will be phenomenal. Corydon and Osborne, and an up and coming Academy have lots of good stuff already, and loads of potential to become so much more. The Exchange is Winnipeg. In my humble opinion, that is out ticket to first-tier status so to speak.

I could go on and on, but long story short, as much as I like to criticize, it's nice to sit back and take a look at what plagues places like Toronto and Calgary (you know, the things they like to not talk about...) and rediscover your love for Winnipeg ...at least, that's what I do from time to time.

In honour of American neo-cons ...God Bless Winnipeg.

Jeff, don't be so insecure.
Why are you trying to change the population number to what you feel is accurate, we already have an official census. The population is what it is, there is no need to inflate it to feel better. If all is well this should not be an issue.
Your personal survey and comments could apply to and for most any similiar sized city as everyone can and should find the positives of the city they call home.
What good decisions are you referencing, from what I can see the civic offices have been talking about the same 'Winnipeg needs' items for 30 years now.

Please share the good decisions that you mention are on there way?

[Only The Lonely..]

I've heard the 715,000 Metro pop too.

I guess it all depends on whether you count Selkirk, Lockport, and St.Andrews as being part of the metropolitan area.

I consider these regions part of the metro, as a good part of the population works in Winnipeg.

However, I don't think Stats Can considers any of those communities to be a part of Winnipeg's CMA.

Hope this helps.

[Boreal]

Only The Lonely ...that was general perception as well...

[Tower Crane]

Originally Posted by Jeff1987

Only The Lonely ...that was general perception as well...

Were still waiting to here about..................."With some good decisions at the civic office, which I, like Newflyer, think is in process of happening (yes, Katz lover, right here), we're slowly on our way."

What decisions are you talking about?

[Boreal]

Just relax bud. ...but I am flattered you're concerned over my apparently more-than-i-though-they-were influential thoughts.

I am in the camp that believes the city can't grow unless it's most fundamental infrastructure is taken care of. Thus, for example, no rapid transit - of any kind - before our roads are brought back to respectability. Years of neglect, which stemmed from the misappropriation of funds in the form of past mayor elects increasing funding for certain programs without making cuts (which in my opinion should have been in the area of civic staff), but instead by lifting money out of the maintenance budget. In doing so, the roads are, well, in the condition you and me see today. In fact, I believe on CJOB a short while ago, a public employee blamed the drivers for hitting the potholes. I can assure anyone, no driver openly wants to ram their car into the craters that polka-dot our streets.

Admittedly yes, we do live in a winter climate, and that will take its toll on roads, and admittedly yes, Sam Katz may appear as a bit of a simpleton. However, he is, as per the last budget on track to at least, bringing back respectability to some of our streets. Everyone is correct in stating that yes, this will NOT attract or help to retain our talented youth, however, in my opinion, before you can compete for the talented youth, you have to make sure your most basic infrastructure is sound - roads, sewage, snow removal, etc, - and maintainable. I believe this is what Katz is working towards, and I think that is a huge plus.

I want all the fancy things everybody else here does, but I just don't believe personally, that we have a proper foundation to build on quite yet. I am of the mindset that everything stems from fundamental principles, which I believe Katz has, and is in the process of working into City Hall, such as reducing the red tape, and the new hotline. Is he a panacea? No, not by any means, but I respect what he is doing, and at that, the new more business-friendly council infront of him.

If you are looking to compile a bulleted list, then you can add tax cuts, and although he may never be labelled a strong urbanist, he is not a suburban mayor, in my opinion.

[drew]

Originally Posted by Jeff1987

I am in the camp that believes the city can't grow unless it's most fundamental infrastructure is taken care of. Thus, for example, no rapid transit - of any kind - before our roads are brought back to respectability.
.

The problem with spending so much on simple repair of existing roads is that it is a never ending process. It's general wear and tear.

You could easily pour 5-billion dollars into the streets of Winnipeg, replace everyone of them with new surface, and everything would be great. Then the fall and spring, and in the winter - a salt-induced freeze thaw cycle happens.

Guess what? In 1, maybe 2 years you are basically back to where you started.

You should have a budget for street wear and tear - but certainly do not break the bank on it. It's not money well spent.

The other catch 22 on road repair versus rapid transit - is that every one extra person who rides transit, is one less car subjecting the roads to wear and tear. So ideally, rapid transit, in the long run will save you on infrastructure costs.

That's why road repairs = short term solution (it's relatively cheap year over year, and visible, and good for politics).

rapid transit = long term solution (expensive, slow to become visible therefore bad for politics).