How downtown Winnipeg is being transformed into a winter wonderland
Downtown Winnipeg is set to get a cool makeover next month but first, it needs ice.
The Downtown Winnipeg BIZ is spearheading the Winter Wonderland initiative, which will once again bring a series of dazzling ice sculptures to the neighbourhood.
To make the icy exhibits possible, Sputnik Architecture harvested ice from the Red River on Wednesday to turn into cool works of art.
“We're going to be pulling blocks of ice that are 90 centimetres by 180 centimetres wide, and they're the depth of the ice, which is 16 inches,” explained Peter Hargraves with Sputnik Architecture.
Harvesters were armed with a loader, chainsaws and shovels to extract the cubes, which weighed over 1,000 pounds.
Harvesters were armed with a loader, chainsaws and shovels to extract the cubes, which weighed over 1,000 pounds. (Source: Scott Andersson/CTV News Winnipeg)
Now that they have the raw materials, sculpting will start in early February and will be done on-site – a process that is open to the public.
“We encourage everybody to come out and take a look,” said Jori Pincock with Downtown Winnipeg BIZ. “They'll be ice sculptures at Hydro Plaza, True North Square, along Graham Avenue, Millennium Library and Holy Trinity Church.”
Harvesters pulled cubes of ice that weighed over a thousand pounds from the Red River Wednesday. Now that they have the raw materials, sculpting will begin in early February. (Source: Scott Andersson/CTV News Winnipeg)
Once the sculptures are finished, Kendrick’s Outdoor Adventures will offer free fat bike tours of downtown Winnipeg.
The BIZ says other events and programming will also be announced in the coming weeks.
“The goal is to bring people downtown and enhance their experience and celebrate our winter city,” Pincock said.
- With files from CTV's Scott Andersson
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.