Winnipeg’s warm weather on Friday had many people dancing in the street and filling patios that have had to stay closed much later than normal.
Temperatures finally broke the double digits on Friday after an extended winter season.
Eve Depencier had her hot dog cart out and people were lining up.
"It's nice because people come out and stay because they see me,” she said. “They know it's spring."
People could be seen wearing shorts, eating ice cream and drinking Slurpees. The relief was palpable.
"It's fantastic, it feels like spring, it's warm,” said Jerry Kristian. “You got to get out and enjoy it."
The patio at Saffron’s opened for the first time on Friday, much later than last year. "Last year it was the middle of March,” said owner Holly Kolevris. “Normally it's the first of April."
For the patrons at Saffron’s, the warm weather is better late than never. "We've been waiting for this all winter,” said Ryan Guest. “It's been a long eight months coming, and it's just nice to see people out enjoying the weather."
With the warm weather here, the City of Winnipeg has announced it will start its annual spring street cleaning. Sweeping crews have already cleaned up parts of the downtown, and on April 28 they'll start tackling streets, sidewalks and back lanes.
No parking signs are being placed in areas scheduled for cleaning. Cars parked in those areas could be ticketed or towed.
The $4.5 million cleanup is expected to take four to five weeks to complete.
The city will also start collecting yard waste after weeks of postponement. It will be picked up every two weeks on the same day as garbage and recycling.
Waste must be put in reusable containers without a lid, or compostable paper yard waste bags.
- With a report by Jon Hendricks
