Achi news desk-
That is the heart of Winnipeg, and the heart of a long-running debate that now appears to have been settled.
On Thursday night, Winnipeg city council voted “yes” to reopening the city’s iconic Portage and Main intersection to pedestrians by the summer of 2025 – in line with the city’s new transit system.
“It’s a good day. After 45 years of our signature intersection being a confusing, ugly embarrassment, I think this is good news for Winnipeg,” said Adam Dooley, who chaired the 2018 ‘Vote Open’ campaign.
That campaign pushed for Portage and Main to reopen, but a public plebiscite that year shut down the idea.
At least until now.
Jino Distasio, a professor of urban geography at the University of Winnipeg, said it’s about time this was done.
“The hustle and bustle of a city is above ground. When you see the comings and goings, it adds to the vibrancy, and I think that’s always been missing here in Portage and Main,” he said.
But, Distasio also has concerns about closing the underground passage under the intersection.
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“My hope is that we can find a way to save the underground, which is now strange because the controversy has now moved from above ground to the ground,” he said.
That concern is shared by Mike Publicover who runs Stonework Bistro in Winnipeg square.
“Of course, anything that blocks flow is going to be painful. So, I worry about that,” he said.
He said business at his bistro was picking up, but he needed more. While the long-term residents of the neighboring towers help, closing the lobby would not.
“The other big concern for me is, you look up and down the center (and) there are so many empty spaces now. That’s not going to help fill them in,” he said.
Mayor Scott Gillingham has said that repairing the membrane to protect the concourse would cost $73 million, and block traffic for five years.
He said the cost would likely triple in a few decades.
“We need to look and say, ‘What do Winnipeggers 20 years from now need to decide today?’ Let’s make that decision,” he said.
As for closing the lobby, it is estimated that that would cost between $20 and $50 million.
The mayor has asked the public service to investigate the next steps for its decommissioning, which will include consultation with property owners and stakeholders.
— with files from Global’s Marney Blunt
& copy 2024 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
