Incumbent pledges to open door to more housing

Scott Gillingham, currently serving as Winnipeg's mayor, has pledged several new initiatives to facilitate the construction of more homes and businesses in the city, should he be re-elected on October 28. Amidst his competitors' pledges, Gillingham vowed to maintain the current building boom, noting a rise in local housing starts and upcoming redevelopment projects at sites like Portage Place and the former Hudson's Bay.

Among his development-related promises, Gillingham intends to form partnerships with Crown corporations, colleges, and universities to rezone their vacant spaces for mid-rise housing. He also proposed a policy requiring city staff to consider incorporating new housing in plans for other city buildings, such as libraries and recreation centers. For instance, he suggested the possibility of a library occupying the ground floor of a building with housing units above it.

Gillingham suggested that city staff could collaborate with developers to expedite and streamline building inspection processes through video inspections, which could identify common obstacles and help the city address them. Although he did not provide a cost estimate for these changes, Gillingham emphasized that city staff could work in partnership to reduce building inspection timelines.