Downtown Winnipeg | |
|---|---|
 View of Downtown Winnipeg fromThe Forks | |
  Downtown Winnipeg | |
| Coordinates:49°53′44″N97°8′19″W / 49.89556°N 97.13861°W /49.89556; -97.13861 | |
| Country |  Canada |
| Province |  Manitoba |
| City | Winnipeg |
| Area | |
| 16.3 km2 (6.3 sq mi) | |
| • Metro | 5,306.79 km2 (2,048.96 sq mi) |
| Population (2016) | |
| 66,850[1] | |
| • Density | 4,095.3/km2 (10,607/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC-6 (Central Standard Time) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-5 (Central Daylight Time) |
| Forward sortation areas | |
| Area codes | 204, 431 |
Downtown Winnipeg is an area ofWinnipeg located near the confluence of theRed andAssiniboine rivers. It is the oldesturban area in Winnipeg, and is home to the city's commercial core, city hall, theseat of Manitoba's provincial government, and a number of major attractions and institutions.
The City of Winnipeg's official downtown boundaries are: theCanadian Pacific Railway mainline on the north, Gomez Street and theRed River on the east, and theAssiniboine River on the south; the western boundaries of downtown are irregular, following along a number of different streets, back lanes, and across properties.[2] Generally speaking, the western boundaries are rarely much further west of Balmoral and Isabel Streets. In 2016,Canadian Geographic produced a map that generalize Winnipeg's downtown boundaries.[3]
Neighbourhoods in the downtown area include theExchange District,Central Park,The Forks, andChinatown. The downtown area is roughly 3 square kilometres (740 acres).Winnipeg Square,Canada Life Centre,Portage Place, and the flagship store ofThe Bay (closed 30 November 2020) are all located on the downtown section ofPortage Avenue. OnMain Street areWinnipeg's City Hall,Union Station, and theManitoba Centennial Centre, which includes theManitoba Museum, thePlanetarium, theCentennial Concert Hall, and theWinnipeg Railway Museum. Although over 60,000 people work downtown[citation needed], only 17,190 people live in the area covered by the Downtown Zoning By-Law.[4]
There are several residential projects under construction on Waterfront Drive and in the Exchange District, and the residential population of the area is projected to increase substantially in the next few years.
TheDowntown Winnipeg Zoning By-Law defines the boundaries of the Downtown planning area, and several sectors within it. The downtowncensus area is slightly smaller, omitting a three-block extension at the north edge. There is also a significantly larger Downtown community area, used for Community Social Data Strategy for Winnipeg.[5][6]
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TheWaterfront District is a newly emergingmixed-use development located in the northeast corner of downtown Winnipeg. The district runs along the west bank of theRed River along Waterfront Drive and featuresStephen Juba Park.[7]
The Waterfront District has seen a number ofresidential construction projects since 2005.[8] Moreover, there have been plans to extend Waterfront Drive further north, to connect it with theDisraeli Fwy. Developer Leon A. Brown has offered up to 12 properties forredevelopment in the area.[9] Sunstone Boutique Hotels had an $11-million plan to build a three-storey, 67-roomboutique hotel on what is now agravel parking lot, along with a newcasual-dining restaurant in the one-storey brick former Harbourmaster's building. The plans also involve construction of a publicplaza area at the south end of the property.[8][10]
The design of the Waterfront District also led to a new road system that included Winnipeg’s firstroundabout, at the corner of Bannatyne Avenue and Waterfront Drive.[7]
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Central Park is one of Winnipeg's mostdensely-populated neighbourhoods with 13,755 people per square km according to the2001 Census. Seventy per cent of all refugees coming to Winnipeg live downtown, in and around the Central Park area. Central Park includes many different ethnicities including Arabs, Vietnamese, Chinese, Ojibway, Filipinos, and African (more than half being African).
TheExchange District is aNational Historic Site of Canada. Just one block north is one of Canada's most famous intersections,Portage and Main, the Exchange District comprises 20city blocks and approximately 150heritage buildings,[11] and it is known for its intactturn-of-the-century collection of warehouses, financial institutions, and earlyterracotta-clad skyscrapers.[12]
Winnipeg's theatre district is located on the east side of the Exchange District, home to theRoyal Manitoba Theatre Centre, andCentennial Concert Hall which houses theWinnipeg Symphony Orchestra, theRoyal Winnipeg Ballet, and theManitoba Opera.[13] The west side of the Exchange is home to Cinematheque, a small movie theatre located in the Artspace building on Albert Street.[14]
The Exchange District's Old Market Square annually hosts theJazz Winnipeg Festival, theWinnipeg Fringe Theatre Festival, and theManitoba Electronic Music Exhibition. Renovations to Old Market Square completed in 2012 added "The Cube", a $1.5 million stage, with a skin made up of 20,000 aluminum links.[15] The stage contains a built-in lighting system, green room and two performance levels.[15]
The district is home toRed River College's Roblin Centre[16] and thePaterson GlobalFoods Institute.[17]
Broadway-Assiniboine lies in the southern part of downtown on the north bank of theAssiniboine River. The neighbourhood is one of the moredensely-populated in Winnipeg, with 15,452.2 people per square kilometre.[18] It features many notable landmarks such as the historicUpper Fort Garry,Hotel Fort Garry, and theManitoba Legislative Building. Broadway-Assiniboine features the "Assiniboine Riverwalk" and is home to many notable restaurants.
The population of Broadway-Assiniboine was 5,270 as of the2016 Census.[18] The most common transportation method of the people in South Portage is walking, with 31.8%, more than 6.5 times higher than the overall 4.9% for Winnipeg.[18] The average employment income for the area is just $47,268, which is lower than Winnipeg's average employment income of $61,164.[18]
Current plans are for a new bicycle-pedestrian bridge to connect McFadyen Park with Fort Rouge Park over the Assiniboine River. The bridge would be partly financed by a grant from the Winnipeg Foundation. There are three designs vying for final approval.[19]
The Forks is a 99-acre (40 ha) national historic, recreational, cultural, and entertainment area site in downtown Winnipeg, deriving its name from being located where theAssiniboine andRed Rivers meet. The Forks was designated aNational Historic Site of Canada in 1974 due to its status as acultural landscape that had borne witness to six thousand years of human activity.[20]
South Portage is the group ofcity blocks located betweenPortage Avenue,Main Street,Broadway, and Memorial Boulevard.
The population of South Portage was 1,865 as of the2016 Census.[21] The most common transportation method of the people in South Portage is walking, with 42.4%, more than five times higher than the overall 4.9% for Winnipeg.[21] The average employment income for the area is just $52,267, which is lower than Winnipeg's average employment income of $61,164.[21]
South Portage is the location of the main branch of theWinnipeg Public Library system, theMillennium Library.[22]
The area also has theWinnipeg Convention Centre with 160,000 sq ft (15,000 m2) of meeting, exhibition and banquet space.[23]Lakeview Square, the largest mixed-use development downtown in the 1970s, was constructed at the same time as the Convention Centre and completed in 1974.
Opened in 2004, theBell MTS Place is located just south of Portage Avenue and is home to theWinnipeg Jets.[24]
The area also has the Norquay Building, the Law Courts,Cityplace mall, andVJ's Drive Inn. There are numerous office buildings and hotels in this area, including some ofWinnipeg's tallest buildings.
A 42-storey apartment building,300 Main, is currently being built byArtis REIT, owners of 360 Main St. andWinnipeg Square. When completed, it will be the tallest apartment block in the city.
Winnipeg's public transit hub is located on theGraham Avenue Transit Mall, as many bus routes converge there.
Formed in 1909,[25] the area is home to many shops and restaurants including Asian grocery stores and an herbal products store.[25]
Winnipeg'sChinatown covers 0.1 square kilometres (0.039 sq mi) northwest of City Hall and is home to about 600 people, of whom 90% are in the Chinese visible minority group.[26] 40.5% of the area's residents speak neither English nor French (as compared to 1% of Winnipeg as a whole), while 71.1% of residents speak some variant of Chinese (includingCantonese,Mandarin and Chinese not otherwise specified).[26]
Downtown Winnipeg has four bridges that directly connect to other Winnipeg neighbourhoods or suburbs across theRed andAssiniboine Rivers. They are the Main Street Bridge, Midtown Bridge, Osborne Street Bridge, and theProvencher Bridge.
One of the first bridges in Winnipeg was the Main-Norwood Bridge. It carries traffic betweenSt. Boniface,St. Vital, and points east from Marion Street. Originally a toll bridge, it carried Winnipeg's firsthorse-drawn streetcars between downtown and River Avenue in the early 1880s.
Osborne Street Bridge connectsOsborne Village to the downtown core. The first iteration was built in the late 1880s. In the 2010s the bridge was upgraded with a lit wall using LED technology.
The Midtown Bridge carries traffic to and from south Winnipeg. It was first opened in September 1955.[27] The Bridge sees upwards of 59,300 vehicles average weekdays.[28]
The Provencher Bridge is the third one built. The first version, called the Broadway Bridge, was not engineered correctly and fell into the Red River four days after opening due toice jams colliding with it. The second version outlived its usefulness and was replaced in the 2000s. The new Provencher Bridge opened to vehicular traffic in December 2003.[29] Located adjacent to the Provencher Bridge is thecable-stayed pedestrian and cycling bridge,Esplanade Riel, opened in 2004. It features space for an indoor restaurant.
There are two major sports venues located downtown,Canada Life Centre where the NHL'sWinnipeg Jets andManitoba Moose have played since 2004; andBlue Cross Park, where theAmerican Association'sWinnipeg Goldeyes baseball team have played since 1999.
TheWinnipeg Walkway system, popularly known as the Winnipeg Skywalk, is a network of pedestrianskyways andtunnels connecting a significant portion of the city centre.[30]
Several media organizations have broadcasting studio located in the downtown area, including television stationsCTV,Global,Citytv, and Canadianspecialty channelAPTN; and radio stationsQX-104, and 93.7 Nostalgia FM.
The television broadcast antennas forCBC Manitoba andICI Radio-Canada Manitoba are located on theRichardson Building, while Global TV Winnipeg is located on top of 201Portage Avenue.
Border Crossings, an internationally known arts magazine featuring Canadian art, publishes from offices in theExchange District.Where Winnipeg magazine features listings of things to do in Winnipeg and is also published from the Exchange District.
Isbister School is anAdult Education Centre operated by theWinnipeg School Division in the north Portage Avenue area.[31] Other private schools serve business needs, such asCDI andBooth University College.
