Winnipeg Minute: Committee Review, Speaking Time, and a Public Safety Advisor

Winnipeg Minute - Your weekly one-minute summary of Winnipeg politics

This Week In Winnipeg:

• There is just a single meeting at City Hall this week. On Wednesday, at 9:00 am, there will be a Special Meeting of the Assiniboia Community Committee. No agenda is available for this meeting yet.
  
  
• Councillor Sherri Rollins is calling for the Welcoming Winnipeg committee to refocus on its original purpose of increasing Indigenous place names. She expressed concern that adding non-Indigenous renaming requests to the Committee’s work dilutes its mission of addressing the historical absence of Indigenous perspectives. Mayor Scott Gillingham acknowledged that the Committee has been overwhelmed with requests and supports finding a separate process for non-Indigenous renaming applications. City Council has approved a motion to review the Welcoming Winnipeg policy, including exploring ways to streamline the renaming process and secure appropriate funding for the Committee.
  
  
• Mayor Scott Gillingham is seeking a senior public safety advisor to help analyze crime trends and develop prevention strategies. The adviser will work closely with police, assist in creating a 911 mental health response unit, and track crime-prevention initiatives. Critics argue that the role may focus too much on policing rather than addressing root social causes, with some suggesting community investment or an advisory panel as better alternatives. Supporters believe the adviser could bridge policing and social issues.

Last Week In Winnipeg:

• Councillors Cindy Gilroy and Brian Mayes proposed adding one percentage point to the property tax increase to help reduce a planned garbage fee hike. The increase, bringing the property tax hike to 6.95%, would generate about $7 million, but it would not fully offset rising waste management costs. Gilroy argued that funding garbage services through property taxes is fairer, as higher-value properties can contribute more. However, Mayor Scott Gillingham rejected the proposal, stating that the budget has already been finalized. Winnipeg households are expected to pay an average of $386 more this year due to combined property tax, sewer, and garbage rate increases, which take effect on April 1st.
  
  
• Council voted to cut the speaking time for public delegates at meetings from 10 minutes to five. However, a proposal to impose similar time limits on Councillors was rejected. Some Councillors opposed the change, arguing that reducing public input contradicts efforts to make Council more accessible, while others said that shorter speaking times would allow more people to participate. Others raised concerns that excessively long meetings discourage public engagement.
  
  
• In a campaign stop, Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre pledged to uphold federal funding commitments made by the Liberals for upgrades to Winnipeg’s North End sewage plant and the Port of Churchill if his party forms government. Poilievre emphasized the importance of expanding the Port of Churchill. The federal Liberals had promised $166 million toward Winnipeg’s sewage plant upgrade, a project facing soaring costs now estimated at $3 billion.