Mayor Scott Gillingham speaks on plans for 2025 in year end interview

Massive changes are ahead for the City of Winnipeg in 2025. This includes the opening of Portage and Main to pedestrians, changes to Winnipeg Transit and ongoing challenges around safety in the city.

To find out more about what’s in store for the new year and what was learned in 2024 CityNews’ Eddie Huband sat down with Winnipeg’s top-elected official in Mayor Scott Gillingham to get his take on the year past and the path ahead. 

Eddie Huband (EH): The big news recently was the unveiling of the new budget, which included a 5.95 per cent property tax increase. That’s going toward things like improving roads, city finances as well as police services. Can you tell us why these were the main priorities for the budget?

Mayor Scott Gillingham (SG): Over this fall, we’ve been hearing from residents, and in fact, there were two polls that went out into the field. One we did ourselves out of the Mayor’s Office and one that was a national poll that had Winnipeg-specific data that was gleaned from it. 

In both of those polls, the response from the public was consistent. Their priorities are safer communities and better roads and the budget investment reflects those priorities. We’re going to have more police officers and an increased number of staff that are Community Safety Officers that provide safety on our transit system; and we’re increasing our roads budget substantially this year to fix the potholes and do a better job of repairing roads. 

EH: You mentioned the police service. I want to talk about the crime initiative from the summer. It warranted some pretty good results and there’s another one here for Christmas: the Holiday Retail Theft Initiative. The more money going into police, how do you feel about how the City has responded to crime over the last year and are you looking forward to continuing to do that next year?

SG: Studies have shown that there is a direct benefit of increasing police presence and getting better results in reducing crime. I know the feedback from the retail sector, the store owners within Winnipeg this summer, has been very positive. They have seen a difference which is the result of an increased presence of police in and around their stores. Customers in stores like it. The staff in stores as well like it and the number of arrests that were made this summer related to that retail crime initiative really has shown a positive increase. 

That was done through provincial funding. We appreciate the province’s partnership on that, but it was really the province who provided money to the Winnipeg Police Service so officers can have overtime, that’s not sustainable in the long run. 

Our city has grown by 65,000 people in the last three years, yet we haven’t really added any net new officers. We’ve added about 24, so nothing substantial. This investment of 36 new officers over the next two years is going to add more to the police service, but it’s not just about police. 

As I said, we’re adding more Community Safety Officers on transit, and in addition to that, we’re putting $1 million into crime prevention by putting $1 million into youth recreation programs. It’s all about: ‘the ounce of prevention’ philosophy. If we could have young people more engaged in recreation services, with good mentors and good peers, and keep them occupied and give them a positive path, hopefully, we’ll be able to reduce the number of young people that fall into crime. 

EH: I noticed that there was a line in the budget with some funding going toward youth programming; an investment in the future so to speak, right? 

SG: It really is. At a time when young people can be not having enough recreation and not enough to do, they can perhaps get into trouble. At a time in their lives when gangs are recruiting, we want to keep them busy. Not just busy, but focused; with positive peers and positive mentors and keep their lives on a positive track, rather than be tempted by crime. 

EH: I want to ask you about the Portage and Main revitalization. What’s the target for completion of construction, if you have any idea about that, and how do you think this is going to improve foot traffic in the area?

SG: Well, the target date is the end of June 2025. We want Portage and Main to open to pedestrian traffic so people can cross that intersection at street level at the end of June 2025. That coincides with the major change we’re making to our transit system. 

We’re completely changing our route networks. That is the time, at the end of June, is when that transit system change will happen. Portant and Main are critical to our transit network’s future as well, and that’s another reason to be doing it. 

It’s also about revitalising Downtown. There’s a lot of good things happening in Winnipeg’s Downtown. We’ve focused on that. Manitoba Metis Federation has made major investments in some of the buildings that they have purchased downtown and they’re bringing people into those buildings to work.

We’re going to have a new development with Railside at the Forks where there will be residential units there. Of course, the Portage Place old mall has been purchased by True North, there’s a significant plan to add a pedestrian tower to that space and a tower for medical purposes, so there’s a lot of real good investment happening. But it’s happening in the quadrants of Portage and Main. The way to connect them most naturally is to let people cross the intersection, so I think it’s going to be an important step in the process of revitalising Winnipeg’s Downtown. 

EH: If you could look back on the past year, do you have any regrets? Is there anything you would have done differently? 

SG: I’d always like things to move faster. For viewers today, they may get frustrated with the speed at which the government works, it seems to go slow. I can tell you as Mayor that I am as equally — or if not more frustrated at times — with the speed in which the government works. I think getting some of the key priorities implemented sooner will be important. For 2025 one of the major focuses is going to be a safer Winnipeg and making the investment in reducing crime, increasing public safety, and the confidence the public has in a safer Winnipeg as well. As we turn the corner, that for sure is one of the key focuses that I have for this next year. 

EH: We’re certainly excited to see, I think I can speak for everybody, excited to see what the New Year holds for you and the city … is there anything you’d like to say to our audience for the holiday season? 

SG: I would just wish everybody a very Merry Christmas, a Happy Holidays, and a Happy New Year.