Cost of redeveloping former Bay building in Winnipeg now $310M, Southern Chiefs says
The cost of redeveloping the former Bay building in downtown Winnipeg has risen more than 50 per cent and some of the amenities that were planned have been scaled back or removed altogether.
The Southern Chiefs' Organization announced Wednesday it will cost $310 million to transform the Hudson's Bay Company's 99-year-old Winnipeg flagship into a mixed-use development called Wehwehneh Bahgahkinahgohn.
The project was originally slated to cost $130 million in 2022, when the Hudson's Bay Company announced the transfer of the six-storey, 655,000-square-foot building at the corner of Portage Avenue and Memorial Boulevard to the SCO, which represents 34 Anishinaabe and Dakota nations in southern Manitoba.
The projected cost was raised to $200 million in 2023.
SCO Grand Chief Jerry Daniels said the cost increase is due to more accurate budgeting and a more detailed design for a complex, adaptive reuse of a heritage building.
Construction inflation and the cost pressures from the Canada-U.S. trade war also played a role in the higher cost, he said.
"The impact is going to be on the materials that we have to buy. So that's going to change and fluctuate prices," Daniels said following a news conference on the main floor of the former department store, where the walls and ceilings have been stripped down to their basic components.
Three levels of government have pledged a combined $141 million in cash, loans and tax relief to support the $310-million Wehwehneh project.
Daniels said the SCO plans to raise the remainder of the funding for the project.
"We will get there, and I guarantee that our team is well-prepared for that," he said.
Federal cabinet Minister Terry Duguid, the Liberal MP for Winnipeg South, said his government has not been asked to contribute more funding. The federal government has promised $96 million in cash and loans for the project.
The provincial government, which promised $35 million in loans, did not send a representative to the SCO news conference and did not immediately respond to a request for comment on any further funding request.
The City of Winnipeg, which is providing $10 million in property-tax incentives for Wehwehneh, also has not been asked to contribute more to the project, said a spokesperson for Winnipeg Mayor Scott Gillingham.
Some previously announced amenities planned for the project have also been deleted or scaled back because of cost pressures, Daniels said.
The project will no longer include assisted living units for First Nations elders, a governance seat for the SCO nor a museum and gallery, the grand chief said.
A monument for survivors of residential schools and day schools has been scaled back, while the SCO is "not firm" on whether Wehwehneh will still include a health and healing centre.
Daniels said the SCO has not changed plans for Wehwehneh to include 373 housing units, a child-care centre, two restaurants, rooftop gardens, office space for the SCO and a central atrium.
In order to build that atrium, a crane erected along Memorial Boulevard will soon start removing part of the roof of the building, he said.
The project is now slated to be completed in 2028, two years later than initially planned. Daniels said the SCO still plans to hold some form of ceremony in 2026 to mark the 100th anniversary of the original department store.
Financial trouble at the Hudson's Bay Co., which is under creditor protection, does not jeopardize any aspect of the Wehwehneh project, Daniels said.
With Bay stores elsewhere in Canada facing potential closure, Daniels said the SCO is prepared to advise First Nations interested in acquiring department store real estate of their own.
1st Daniels comments since leave
Daniels' appearance at the Wednesday announcement was his first since he took a month-long leave of absence after he was hospitalized following an early-morning altercation in Ottawa in December.
Daniels described what happened to him in Ottawa as an "unfortunate incident" and said he is grateful to remain grand chief.
"I'm absolutely thankful that I've been able to get the support of the communities and get the support of the chiefs," he said.
He also thanked staff at Aurora Recovery Centre for helping him with what he described as personal issues.
The announcement about Wehwehneh was also the first for SCO since it replaced chief executive officer Joy Cramer with Ryan Bear.
"We're here to make a message that this project is well on its way to completion," Daniels said.
The cost of redeveloping the former Bay building in downtown Winnipeg is now $310 million. Three levels of government have pledged $141 million in cash, loans and tax relief to help the Southern Chiefs' Organization complete the project. (Trevor Lyons/CBC)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Municipalities, residents decry gaps in N.S. coastal protection as 'death by 1,000 cuts'
When Jessica Bradford first spotted a square patch of dirt infill as she drove along the Queens County coastline in Western Head, N.S., she had one thought. "That's not going to last very long," Bradford recalled thinking, standing last week near the section of infill as waves washed up on a rocky beach just steps away. It's unclear whether the infill project on private property along Shore Road follows proper guidelines. But even if it does, Bradford and some municipal leaders say the situation represents a major gap in Nova Scotia's approach to coastal protection. Bradford said she first noticed work being done on the small strip of land along the roadside beside the beach two weeks ago. She said trees and grasses were removed to allow for heavy equipment to spread dirt over the site. The move made her concerned the loss of established root systems would speed up erosion and worsen flooding on the road, Bradford said, which often becomes submerged during storms. "We know the importance of living shorelines," Bradford said. "It made me wonder, how was this allowed to happen?" When Nova Scotia's Progressive Conservative government decided to not proclaim the Coastal Protection Act that would have brought in provincewide rules last February, it said municipalities could enact own bylaws on the issue. It also released mapping tools and information, so property owners could make an "informed decision" about protecting their land and buildings from sea-level rise and erosion. But Bradford said the Region of Queens Municipality — which has land-use bylaws that address coastal setbacks — told her it was not aware of the Shore Road project, and had not received any permit applications for the site. Provincial staff have told Bradford they are looking into whether the project followed their rules and had the correct permits. CBC News reached out to the property owner but did not receive a response. Scott Christian, Queens mayor, said legislation allows municipalities to regulate infill and removal of vegetative buffers on a coastline — but only when it's related to development. If a property owner doesn't plan to build anything on their land right away, infill projects fall under provincial jurisdiction. "I think that's problematic because I think it opens up the door where people could just say, 'Well, I'm not planning on developing,'" Christian said. "Even if a structure isn't envisioned on a property, I think we need to protect against the problematic removal of natural vegetation along our shoreline. So we need to do better." Christian said he's had residents complain of seven current Queens County projects where vegetation was removed or infill brought in, including Western Head. "I appreciate their advocacy, but we simply don't have a leg to stand on," Christian said. Christian also said municipalities can only govern private property above the high-water mark. Anything happening below that, such as armoured walls reaching into the water, falls under provincial jurisdiction. If infill stretches farther into navigable waters or fish habitat, federal regulations could also apply. A large infill project featuring a rock wall on Little Crescent Beach in Lunenburg County brought many complaints from residents, and helped push the Municipality of the District of Lunenburg to bring in its own coastal bylaws last summer. Recent work on the site shows two wooden buildings coming up to the edge of the wall. The municipality's mayor, Elspeth McLean-Wile, said the new bylaw requires setbacks of 30 metres from the water's edge, but the project's development permits were issued before the new rules came in. However, McLean-Wile said there's still nothing the municipality can do to prevent a similar armoured wall project if it falls below the high-water mark like in the Crescent Beach case. "I think this is a misstep on the part of the provincial government," McLean-Wile said. "There are probably other issues as well, but infilling is one that really frustrates our residents. "These are the holes that continue to exist." Nicolas Winkler, coastal adaptation co-ordinator for the Ecology Action Centre in Halifax, said he continues to see coastal infill cases around Nova Scotia he's concerned about. But he said the full extent of the issue is difficult to know, because many are only visible from the water and are "out of sight, out of mind" for residents or government officials. "That is death by 1,000 cuts. It's these small, consistent … changes to our coastline that, over time, will add up to a coast that we may not recognize," Winkler said. Both McLean-Wile and Christian said they would prefer to see provincewide rules, and don't agree with the provincial government's comments that municipalities are best fit to handle the file because they know their communities best. If the province won't bring in the Coastal Protection Act, Christian and McLean-Wile said there needs to be a fulsome conversation between both levels of government about addressing the gaps left behind. "There's problematic infilling along our shoreline now. And so we need like pretty urgent action on this," Christian said. If legislation is changed to allow municipalities to regulate infill projects regardless of development plans, Christian said the move must come with far more financial and staffing resources than what has been offered so far. The province has provided template bylaws, and $1.3 million to the Nova Scotia Federation of Municipalities for local governments to use on consulting fees for climate change and sustainability analysts. CBC News asked the Department of Environment and Climate Change to respond to the concerns about municipalities having no power over many infill and armoured rock projects, but they did not answer the question. "We have moved forward to what we feel is a better approach to protecting our 13,000 [kilometres] of diverse coastline," department spokesperson Cindy Porter said in an email. "The province is committed to continuing to support municipalities every step of the way." MORE TOP STORIES
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Nova Scotia farms were in the red last year — again
Nova Scotia's farming industry hasn't turned a profit in nearly a decade, and last year lost more than $41 million — a reflection of the economic challenges that are concerning industry leaders in the province. The numbers aren't shocking to farmer Amy Hill, whose farm came out of the red in 2024 for the first time in 15 years. "I'm not making a living wage…. My husband has to work off-farm in order for this to work," she said. Hill runs Snowy River Farm, a small operation in Cooks Brook, N.S., with broiler and layer chickens, pigs, a variety of vegetable crops and one beloved cow and its calf. Hill started the farm with her husband, and for many years they were trying to grow the operation. With every major investment — such as new barns and greenhouses — she said there was always hope it would pay off in the future. But they could never make the numbers work. She said the difference last year that allowed for a small profit was a decision to scale back. Her husband restarted an off-farm career as a carpenter in 2023. Hill netted $6,000 in 2024. "It means we grow less for our community, and I'm really disappointed in that," she said. "But if we wanted the farm to survive itself, then we had to make some changes." Farm profits or losses in each province are calculated annually by Statistics Canada. The agency released 2024 figures at the end of May. Nova Scotia is not the only province where farms suffered losses last year, but it is the only province where this has been an ongoing problem for so long. Nova Scotia farms, overall, haven't been profitable since 2016. Alicia King, president of the Nova Scotia Federation of Agriculture, said there is no clear answer for why Nova Scotia farms have been consistently struggling, while farms in other parts of Canada have not. "That's one of the questions that we do have, and that we want to dig into a little bit," King said. She said extreme weather and harsh growing seasons in recent years have contributed, although they don't explain the trend completely. King said there is some good news. Nova Scotia farms are growing, in some ways. Statistics Canada figures show farm sales rising over the past five years — a total of 35 per cent from 2020 to 2024. However, that growth has not kept pace with the rising cost of operations. "We are feeling a pressure, there's no question about that," said King. The Nova Scotia Federation of Agriculture hosted a meeting last month with leaders from more than a dozen groups representing different types of farming, and a handful of provincial cabinet ministers. King said the economic strain on Nova Scotia farmers was one of the main topics. The others were bringing more local food into the province's new school lunch program and protecting agricultural land, King said. King said the federation is working on a long-term strategy that she hopes will guide farmers into better finances. She said the strategy should be complete in the next year to 18 months. In the meantime, she's encouraging farmers to turn more attention to their bottom lines. "We're business owners and we have to make decisions with that lens all the time," she said. "And sometimes that's a little bit more difficult because … there's a passion to it as well. And sometimes we let our passion override a business decision." Greg Morrow, Nova Scotia's minister of agriculture, declined an interview request. His department sent a statement that acknowledged "some challenging times for farmers." The statement said Nova Scotia is working with federal and provincial colleagues and the industry to find solutions. It pointed to a recent top-up of $7 million to a program that helps fruit and vegetable growers buy season-extending equipment — things such as greenhouses, irrigation, lighting and cold storage. Hill said targeted, temporary-assistance programs can be helpful, but thinks money should go to labour if any level of government subsidizes farming in any way. Hill has two part-time employees this year, whose wages are partially covered through a federal employment program. If she could hire more people, she said, she could grow more food. "We need bodies helping with this production," Hill said. The number of farm workers in Nova Scotia has been shrinking, and the federation projects a shortage of 2,600 farm workers by the end of the decade. MORE TOP STORIES
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Packline USA rebrands as Packline Solutions Group
Packline USA has transitioned to a new identity as Packline Solutions Group. The company noted that the updated name embodies the company's dedication to delivering all-encompassing solutions within the food packaging industry. This rebranding is in line with the company's goal to establish itself as a fully integrated ally for food producers throughout North America. The initiative seeks to improve its value offering by providing packaging machinery, materials, and support in a unified manner. Packline Solutions Group added that it is committed to offering innovative, interconnected solutions across the complete packaging life cycle. The organisation designs and supplies a variety of packaging equipment and materials specifically tailored for food manufacturers in North America. Its product range includes modular machinery, films, pouches, and containers that are designed for automation. This customised approach aims to assist clients in increasing production while complying with changing food safety regulations and shelf-life requirements. Packline Solutions Group CEO Andrew Pawling said: 'Our customers need integrated solutions that work harder, smarter, and faster. 'This brand refresh reflects our recommitment as a true solutions partner - one that brings decades of operational expertise in the food industry to deliver systems that perform from the factory floor to the retail shelf.' By merging packaging automation with material expertise, the company intends to deliver a single-source benefit for its clientele. This strategic initiative is anticipated to enhance machine design, material compatibility, and end-of-line efficiency for food producers. Packline Solutions Group chief growth officer Patrick Nunan said: 'While we embrace our legacy as a high-performance machine supplier, we're excited about our significant growth beyond that core competency. 'Whether it's a custom-engineered filling system, a performance-tested barrier film, rigid tray, or preformed pouch, our goal is to deliver comprehensive solutions that help our clients package smarter and perform better - without compromise.' "Packline USA rebrands as Packline Solutions Group" was originally created and published by Packaging Gateway, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Sign in to access your portfolio
