Winnipeg HAD a grand 1886 Victorian city hall.
In 1962 the city demolished it to make way for a sterile bunker-style "City Centre," which houses all of Winnipeg's municipal offices, except for the police department, whose new building is apparently 56% over budget and making problems for the Mayor. See here: (
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"Chinks in Katz's armour, police HQ
Councillors defect, calling for audit — leaving Sam as lame-duck mayor
BY TOM BRODBECK ,WINNIPEG SUN
FIRST POSTED: TUESDAY, JANUARY 14, 2014 05:55 PM CST
"Mayor Sam Katz is losing his grip on power at city hall.
And it doesn't bode well for his re-election bid in October, should he decide to seek a fourth term in office.
The latest power shift from his office came Tuesday after two members of the mayor's executive policy committee broke ranks with the mayor on the controversial, downtown police headquarters project.
Councillors Jeff Browaty (North Kildonan), Brian Mayes (St. Vital), Devi Sharma (Old Kildonan) and Thomas Steen (Elmwood-East Kildonan) had sided with Katz in opposing an audit into the purchase and renovation of the new cop shop, which went over budget by a staggering $75 million, or 56%.
But both councillors flip-flopped this week, saying pressure from constituents caused them to change their minds. Who says you can't fight city hall?
City council, led by Katz and EPC, had voted 9-7 against an audit in November, claiming taxpayers already had all the information they needed about the project. But the public disagreed, largely because there are many unanswered questions about why the project went so off the rails, questions which have been raised in this column.
The truth is, the public has been unwilling to accept Katz's "just trust me" attitude on the police headquarters project.
And after weeks of backlash from taxpayers — led in part by non-EPC councillors Paula Havixbeck (Charleswood-Tuxedo) and Jenny Gerbasi (Fort Rouge-East Fort Garry), as well as the Canadian Taxpayers' Federation — Browaty and Mayes abandoned Katz on the issue.
They hung him out to dry, saying they would now support a motion at council to conduct an audit into the project.
Of course, the councillors should have done the right thing from the very beginning and supported an audit to protect the interests of taxpayers. They've since been dragged kicking and screaming into accepting that an audit is needed, although they don't seem to genuinely support the idea. They call the public backlash over the issue a "distraction." And they hope their less-than-enthusiastic support for an audit will make that distraction go away. It's a pretty lame position to take.
Whatever the case, it's another example of Katz losing influence over city council.
The new police headquarters is one of Katz's signature projects. And the fact it's turned into a financial disaster under his watch is trouble enough for the beleaguered mayor. However, Katz at least had — until recently — enough EPC support to avoid an audit, which may have helped shield him from further political embarrassment.
Not anymore. With Browaty and Mayes reversing their decisions, there now appears to be enough votes on city council to overrule the mayor.
That giant sucking sound is political power being drained from the mayor's office.
And it's not like Katz has many — or any — options left to surround himself with better trained seals to support his agenda around the EPC table.
Last October two veteran councillors bolted from EPC — Scott Fielding (St. James-Brooklands) and Dan Vandal (St. Boniface). Katz booted Havixbeck from his inner circle a year ago. And most other non-EPC councillors are considered Katz's political opponents.
Katz became so desperate in his EPC recruitment efforts recently that he even wooed maverick Coun. Justin Swandel (St. Norbet) back to EPC in November, the foul-mouthed city rep who quit EPC in 2012, calling it "dysfunctional."
That leaves very few disciples left for Katz to rely on to advance his political agenda, or to salvage what's left of his battered political career in the months leading up to the October civic election.
It's looking more and more like Sam Katz is turning into a lame duck mayor, whether he likes it or not."
As fascinating as all that political intrigue and payback is, it can't add any VISUAL interest to the drab and awful Winnipeg City Hall -- and Blasterz aren't the only ones who think so: (
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"After the previous City Hall developed structural problems neccessitating the removal of parts of the building, it was decided to construct a new City Hall modeled on the “Civic Centre” concept. Completed in 1964, there are two buildings – one for the Council, the other for the city Administration. They are separated by a courtyard but connected by an underground walkway. Both are very much products of their time with the courtyard seeming very soulless. Of the two, the Council Building is far superior with a fine 1960s interior which is largely intact.
The Administration Building is particularly foreboding with its small windows on the upper levels. There was a missed opportunity here to create a plaza with public space on both sides of Main Street, in front of City Hall and in front of the Centennial Concert Hall."
WE AGREE!
From the Winnipeg City Government website: (
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"In its place, Council endorsed a proposal to construct a New City Hall modeled on the "Civic Centre" concept. The original plan called for the construction of two buildings - one for Council, the other for the Administration - separated by a courtyard but connected by an underground walkway. Shortly thereafter, the scope of the project was enlarged to include a Public Safety Building and Civic Parkade. Work began on the present City Hall in 1962 and was completed at a cost of $8.2 million. The complex was officially opened October 5, 1964.
On December 21, 1964 City Council awarded a contract for the construction of the new Public Safety Building and Civic Parkade on land directly west of the City Hall at a cost of $4.8 million. These buildings were completed in 1966. The Public Safety Building houses the headquarters of the Winnipeg Police Service and the Emergency Response Service. The parkade provides parking for 455 Automobiles on four levels above ground.
Both buildings are connected to the City Hall by the underground walkway and in 1967, construction was completed on an underground walkway connecting the Civic Centre Complex and the Manitoba Centennial Centre."
Dallas TX has those same underground walkways, but instead of connecting two or three buildings, they connect much of downtown Dallas, taking life, energy, excitement and interest off the streets. Dallas is doing away with theirs - will Winnipeg follow suit?