Sober second go rides on solid support system

Endorsements build up mayoral candidates’ profiles

With just over a week until election day, high-profile endorsements are rolling in for Winnipeg’s top mayoral candidates in what political observers say is another way to sway undecided voters.

An opportunity to re-imagine downtown

The pandemic has been devastating for downtown Winnipeg. An abundance of “For Lease” signs in storefront windows has provided an intuitive glimpse, but a new report titled “State of Downtown: The impact of the pandemic to date” has quantified the profound challenges facing the economic, social and cultural heart of our city.

With the exodus of students and office workers, storefront businesses downtown have lost an average of $2 million per week in gross revenue since the pandemic began. This has led to more than 2,000 people losing their jobs and almost 50 storefront businesses permanently closing. The conference, hotel, hospitality, and arts and culture industries saw devastating declines, and more than 1.5 million square feet of office space are now vacant.

The pandemic has also exacerbated long-standing challenges of poverty and homelessness, with social agencies struggling to meet the needs of downtown’s vulnerable population.

The report paints a dire image, but we have been here before. Twenty years ago, downtown Winnipeg was in a similar situation. Population was at an all-time low as people moved to the suburbs, retail shops relocated from Portage Avenue to distant shopping malls, and office space was in decline. In the face of this challenge, government and private industry came together to rebuild downtown.

Running a clothing company keeps mom of five girls in stitches

Andrée-Anne Généreux, mother of identical, four-year-old triplets, has grown used to being peppered with questions whenever passersby spot her and the girls ambling through their River Heights neighbourhood.

Do triplets run in the family, they openly wonder? How long was her pregnancy? Was she big?

Not that she’s aware, though both of her in-laws do have twin siblings; 34 weeks and three days, “but hey, who’s counting?”; and, “Are you freaking kidding me? I was huge,” she responds with a laugh, each and every time.

More and more, however, comments directed her way are along the lines of, “Where did the girls get those gorgeous dresses?” or “That jumper! You have to tell me who makes it.”

Back to school means increased costs for parents, post-secondary students

In the words of advice for students from Thornton Melon: “It’s rough out there. Move back in with your parents.”

As comedian Rodney Dangerfield’s character alluded to in the 1986 comedy Back to School, it is indeed a tough financial environment as students head back to the classroom in 2026.

A Capital One Canada survey found families are struggling with costs, with nearly six in 10 parents surveyed stating back-to-school expenses are higher than expected.

It’s not just tuition, new clothes and supplies. Extracurricular activities — like hockey, figure skating, ringette, soccer, dance, etc. — also ramp up, involving tuition-sized payments.

Dangerous offender status sought for convicted killer

CROWN prosecutors intend to apply to have a convicted killer, who also admitted his guilt in an assault on a stranger at The Forks and a robbery at a local beer vendor, designated as a dangerous offender.

Daniel Christopher Dumas, who is in his mid-30s, pleaded guilty to assault causing bodily harm and robbery in front of provincial court Judge Donovan Dvorak on Monday for the attacks on June 6 and 7, 2025. He will be sentenced at a later date.

Prosecutor Monique Cam said the Crown plans to apply for a dangerous offender designation for Dumas, which, if granted, could result in him being given an indefinite prison sentence.

“The Crown does intend to make an application at a future date … for a remand for assessment to have Mr. Dumas assessed by a court-ordered assessor for the purpose of pursuing a dangerous offender application,” Cam said.