Winnipeg | Osborne Village & Corydon area

[Ando]

That's where Doug Ford got the idea for his $1 beer promise.

[Wpg_Guy]

alamasonryandcontractinginc Finally some brick going up at the Osborne/Stradbrook facade renewal project for @0812buildingsolutions . Gonna look great when it’s done!

[borkborkbork]

Originally Posted by WpG_GuY

Finally some brick going up at the Osborne/Stradbrook facade renewal project for @0812buildingsolutions . Gonna look great when it’s done!

Great to see. Nice to see 0812 involved --they did Fools & Horses and I suspect whatever they're up to with this plaza will be done well (although still saddened that they're keeping that awful parking lot...)

Looks like there's a bit of other action in the village -- renos appear to be underway at TD and Desart (117 Osborne) has a LEASED sign up in the window now.

[buzzg]

The mix of old and new brick looks a little.. odd.

[borkborkbork]

Originally Posted by buzzg

The mix of old and new brick looks a little.. odd.

This is the plan. Not very high res but it looks like the sections where they're keeping the old brick will have some sort of siding:



About that fucking parking lot, though. The thing that frustrates me is, you could create a pedestrian walkway that would connect the laneway right to Stradbrook, and it would take out maybe two parking spots. Even if they're going to keep that strip-mall parking lot, they could make it actually connect to the street instead of surrounding the whole lot with a fence. Safer, too, since it would give pedestrians dedicated access they don't have to share with a curb cut from the street.

[buzzg]

I agree the parking is bad, but the BIZ likely has no recourse as it was parking under the patio before – they technically never removed it. Also there is still the big opening on Osborne.

I really wish they would have just torn it down and built something much better, that they could make more money off of, close to the street. But hey it's not my money and it's already there.

I would LOVE to see them build a small building right at the street corner, and then the remaining L-shaped space would be pedestrian-only and could be used for cafe/patio seating. I know someone shot down that idea before on here saying there's no room, but there definitely is. Something about the size of the eyeglass store (it was 2 units combined) could fit there with ample walking/seating room. Then the current car passageway isn't needed, and it connects with the (shitty) walkway between TD and Green Carrot. Because Pizza Heaven is taking over TD, I'd be all for them using part of that walkway as a patio. They have quite a bit of parking in the back already.

Check out the space: https://www.google.ca/maps/@49.87808.../data=!3m1!1e3.

[trueviking]

Do we know for sure the restaurant and patio are being punted?

[buzzg]

I believe someone on here said that they saw the space being marketed somewhere. Also, they put the business up for sale last year (can still see it up online) and it never sold. I know people involved – it's not making much money. They'd probably be happy to get let out of their lease.

[borkborkbork]

Originally Posted by buzzg

I believe someone on here said that they saw the space being marketed somewhere. Also, they put the business up for sale last year (can still see it up online) and it never sold. I know people involved – it's not making much money. They'd probably be happy to get let out of their lease.

Listing for the business when it was for sale says their lease expires July 14, 2018, and that they have one 4-year option to renew. I suspect they'll be out. I hope they keep the patio. Hate to see the village lose a patio to get a handful of parking spots.

[rivercity]

More of a south Osborne strip mention but Little Sister coffee maker is planning to open a second location at Morley and Osborne. Formerly Bijou/BMO, etc. Kitty corner to the Rubin block.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BkbeUJqH...ilsistercoffee

[Wolf13]

Originally Posted by buzzg

That argument by the church is absurd. Prioritize belief over aesthetic... lol are you out of your minds?!

Originally Posted by optimusREIM

There is something fishy about that whole line of reasoning. It sounds like an excuse for the sake of 'keeping their options open' or something along those lines, which is, of course, total bullshit.

What's fishy?

Everyone knows that heritage designation, especially if it isn't expected when one first buys the property, can be a huge financial obstacle to any property owner without a lot of money.

Is "belief over aesthetic" the true reason? Perhaps not, but it may be the most effective one. Contrary to public perception, most churches have very, very little money.

If they ever wanted to develop or renovate to accomodate their church vision, a heritage designation would be a huge obstacle, thus indirectly infringing on their religious pursuit.

Originally Posted by Ando

This could be why Germany is ranked 23rd out of 191 countries for alcohol consumption.

[optimusREIM]

^their "religious pursuit" doesn't have to mean destroying neighbourhood character or good architecture. If you let church boards decide what to do with their buildings they'll don silly things like paint over frescoes in white and deface the artistic integrity of the original architecture.

Idk it may sound super idealistic of me but I think that placing a heritage designation on a building that adds to the cultural character of an area is totally reasonable. And it certainly doesn't break the sacred separation of church and state.

[michelleb]

Would a heritage designation prevent the church from converting the building into housing in the hypothetical future? I'm guessing it would. That's becoming a trend for older traditional churches who find themselves unable to sustain a dwindling congregation but want to retain the building.

If so, I sympathize with them.

[Bdog]

Originally Posted by optimusREIM

^their "religious pursuit" doesn't have to mean destroying neighbourhood character or good architecture. If you let church boards decide what to do with their buildings they'll don silly things like paint over frescoes in white and deface the artistic integrity of the original architecture.

We should add this one to the "Churches destroying Winnipeg neighbourhoods" thread, along the Calvary Temple. Might want to add Trinity Baptist in Osborne Village too. When the City pushed the heritage designation on them, they had the audacity to ask that it apply to the exterior only. Maybe add St. Mary's Cathedral too. The renderings we saw of their proposed development isn't tall enough for downtown, and not appealing enough either. Bad neighbours, especially with True North Square right next door.

/s

[windypeg]

It totally makes sense why the church wouldn't want the heritage designation, but the way they tried to argue it? Separation of church and state?!? There have already been some great projects in the city with churches converted to affordable housing. If that's what they were thinking of doing why not just say that? Hopefully the city would work with them, and if not then it's the city that looks bad. Instead they suggested that they think separation of church and state means the church is somehow exempt from the rules of the state which is outrageous and makes them look idiotic and frankly terrifying.

[esquire]

Originally Posted by windypeg

It totally makes sense why the church wouldn't want the heritage designation, but the way they tried to argue it? Separation of church and state?!? There have already been some great projects in the city with churches converted to affordable housing. If that's what they were thinking of doing why not just say that? Hopefully the city would work with them, and if not then it's the city that looks bad. Instead they suggested that they think separation of church and state means the church is somehow exempt from the rules of the state which is outrageous and makes them look idiotic and frankly terrifying.

Yeah, it strikes me as pretty over the top. "Separation of church and state"... I mean, really.

When I was a student I used to work in a politician's office and not surprisingly you'd receive some kooky correspondence from time to time. I learned quickly that the more grandiose the claim, the dumber the issue was. Like when someone started off their letter with CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY bolded and underlined, you knew it was going to be someone upset about the bank charging them a NSF fee on a bounced cheque or something like that.

[rkspec]

Originally Posted by buzzg

That's the issue – it's not a group. The BIZ is one person, and I've heard from owners there that she/it's extremely dysfunctional and unorganized (maybe on purpose). The BIZ director runs an events company, which magically gets the contract to do Canada Day and any other events on Osborne. Must be a terrible company because aside from logistics about the only thing the street party gets is some snow fencing and a few Canada flags.

Osborne Village BIZ director to run for Winnipeg city council
https://globalnews.ca/news/4297295/o...-city-council/

[Jeff]

driving through OV last Saturday night around midnight shows the village still has major drawing power. the place was overrun with lineups to get into almost anywhere that was open. harkens back to the mid-2000s when that strip was thriving in the nightlife dept.

[windypeg]

Originally Posted by Jeff

driving through OV last Saturday night around midnight shows the village still has major drawing power. the place was overrun with lineups to get into almost anywhere that was open. harkens back to the mid-2000s when that strip was thriving in the nightlife dept.

In terms of people on the streets, the village is still the most vibrant part of the city. Rumours of its demise have been greatly exaggerated. River & Osborne surely has more pedestrians pass through than any other corner in town at any given time, especially evenings & weekends. It does still beg the question of why some of those storefronts are so hard to fill.

[buzzg]

Originally Posted by rkspec

Osborne Village BIZ director to run for Winnipeg city council
https://globalnews.ca/news/4297295/o...-city-council/

Yeah I heard this. Apparently the GM of Upstairs is her campaign manager or something. LOL, good luck.

Originally Posted by windypeg

In terms of people on the streets, the village is still the most vibrant part of the city. Rumours of its demise have been greatly exaggerated. River & Osborne surely has more pedestrians pass through than any other corner in town at any given time, especially evenings & weekends. It does still beg the question of why some of those storefronts are so hard to fill.

A big reason was bad landlords charging high rents – been discussed on here at length. Many of the buildings have changed hands in the last 18 months.