In the last article (October 28, Professionally Speaking), we talked about how our Downtown is planned to grow and change. Downtown, however, isn’t the only area poised to transform in the coming years. Through OurWinnipeg and the Complete Communities Direction Strategy, our city’s centres, corridors and major redevelopment sites will also see significant changes over time.
Centres are hubs of localized activity which offer a variety of housing options, activities, services and employment opportunities. Corridors are important city routes that also serve the additional purpose of accommodating a mix of uses, functioning and vibrant places for Winnipeggers to live, work and play. Some corridors — rapid transit corridors — support rapid transit with higher densities around rapid transit stations. Major redevelopment sites are large, underused parcels of land that are close to existing communities and are prime locations for intensification.
Centres, corridors and major redevelopment sites are all major components of how the city fits together and functions. They are mapped in the Complete Communities Direction Strategy (available online at speakupwinnipeg.com) and will be further refined over time.
Winnipeg is entering a forecasted period of significant long-term growth. Centres, corridors and major redevelopment sites present major opportunities to accommodate new housing, retail and amenities through mixed use development. Take, for example, our regional mixed-use centres (regional shopping centres). These areas often occupy a large amount of land and have the capacity to grow and change, incorporating housing and other land uses that they typically have not provided in the past. Over time, they can evolve into vibrant, higher density areas with multiple transportation options, integrated with the surrounding neighbourhood. The same is true for regional mixed-use corridors and major redevelopment sites.
While centres, corridors and major redevelopment sites vary in form, size and readiness for development, they share some common opportunities:
• Convenient access to goods and services.
• A high level of transit access.
• Well-connected to the street network.
• Opportunity for a range of uses, such as commercial, jobs and higher-density housing.
• Opportunity for high-quality public gathering spaces and activity areas.
What tools will help realize the vision for centres,
corridors and major redevelopment sites?
The Complete Communities Direction Strategy acts as the “playbook,” guiding development in all parts of the city, including centres, corridors and
major redevelopment sites. Several other tools are also being created or have been created to serve as tools for implementation. For example, the Complete Communities Checklist is a new tool under development that is intended to assist development stakeholders in achieving complete communities. The city’s Zoning By-Law 200/2006 will be reviewed and aligned to support the Complete Communities Direction Strategy.
Current success stories are being featured on an
interactive online map which will be expanded over time. City departments will be working together to ensure that their daily work and budgets support the goals of OurWinnipeg, Complete Communities, and the other three direction strategies: sustainable transportation, sustainable water and waste, and a sustainable
Winnipeg.
To learn more, visit speakupwinnipeg.com. While you’re there, check out OurWinnipeg in Action, a new online interactive map tool that helps you learn about the urban structure and innovative projects taking place in different parts of the city.
— provided by the Planning and Land Use Division of the city’s Planning, Property and Development Department.