Winnipeg mayor wants to waive landfill tipping fees for HBC building redevelopment

The Hudson’s Bay Company heritage building in Winnipeg is photographed Thursday, April 21, 2022. One of the landmark stores formerly run by the Hudson's Bay Co. is about to undergo a major transformation in the name of reconciliation with Indigenous people. (John Woods/The Canadian Press)

Winnipeg's mayor wants the city to waive landfill tipping fees for the Southern Chiefs' Organization (SCO) as it redevelops the old Hudson's Bay Company building on Portage Avenue.

If passed, SCO would not have to pay fees required by the city. Provincial fees would not be exempt.

The motion notes disposing of all the hazardous materials such as asbestos would cost some $257,000 at current rates.

The report also says the SCO has already managed to divert 60 per cent of the waste from the project away from the landfill by repurposing it for various community groups.

Mayor Scott Gillingham says SCO Grand Chief Gerry Daniels has a great vision for what the property can become, but it will be expensive to make it a reality.

“It’s going to be incumbent on us really as partners to assist in some ways, and I think we should be assisting in some ways. This is, I believe, a very small way but a very practical way that the City of Winnipeg can assist SCO in this development,” he said.

The historic landmark was officially transferred to the organization last year.

The SCO's vision for the site includes nearly 300 housing units, a health and healing centre, a museum, and restaurants.

The reimagined HBC building is slated to open in November of 2026, the same month the building turns 100 years old.

The executive policy committee will consider the motion at a meeting next week.

- With files from CTV’s Kayla Rosen