It was once called the “Best Neighbourhood in Canada,” and now after a few difficult pandemic years, Osborne Village is undergoing some significant change to revitalize it.
“The vibe of the neighbourhood is probably always going to stay the same. But the kinds of businesses here and the people who are here will change and evolve, just like any cool neighbourhood in any city,” said Zohreh Gervais, Osborne Village BIZ’s new executive director.
She said, “I think everybody in Winnipeg noticed over COVID and, you know, kind of with a few key spots closing up over the last decade, things have really changed here.”
Gervais hopes to turn the village into the hotspot it was some years ago, which involves bringing more people to the already-dense neighbourhood.
“We’ve all seen the construction that’s up everywhere,” Gervais said, including for two large apartment buildings on Osborne Street, which will welcome residents next year.
Adam Sharfe, president of Sharfe Developments which is building the housing, said the complex will be six storeys high, with 90 apartments and up to seven commercial unites. “We’ve got 14 suites that are going to be deemed affordable by CMHC standards.”
Public art will also be a part of the build.
“The length of this new building is going to be a massive mural,” Gervais said. “We haven’t decided yet if it’s going to be a series of different murals by a number of artists, or if it’s going to be one large mural.”
She said she thinks it will “really add to the feeling of vibrancy in the neighbourhood.”
Further north, at River and Osborne is the site of a proposed slip lane closure. Gervais said the area “will become more of a pedestrian plaza. Right now, it’s very much interrupted by the constant stream of traffic — and like, fast traffic — that tends to come through here.”
She added, “it will make the corner much safer. Not just for pedestrians, but also cyclists, and generally also for people in cars who’re driving as well.”
Come spring, she said the City of Winnipeg will study how closing the lane affects walkability to see what should be done in the long-term.
There are also new protected bike lanes going up on Stradbrook and River.
“That’s been something that’s been missing from this neighbourhood for a long time,” Gervais said.
Though it’s not crossed the city’s desk yet, the BIZ hopes to make River and Osborne a pedestrian scramble, so that “cars and people never cross the intersection at the same time.”
Judy Coy, owner of the Silver Lotus in Osborne village, said she has seen the village’s ups and downs since she opened her first shop in 1987.
“I do think that with COVID and with what we’ve experienced, it’s not just the village. It’s everywhere.”
She’s optimistic it’s on the way up.
“It’s unique to the city and I think we should really embrace it.”
Gervais said, “I think it will always be more of a grassroots type of neighbourhood. So, I think that’s really exciting and important for people to keep in mind, that while they change, the businesses are still ultimately mostly small businesses.”
She hopes to reclaim the title of Canada’s Best Neighbourhood once again.
— with files from Global’s Iris Dyck