'We have to wait': Majority of Winnipeg construction projects yet to finish

Summer officially gave way to autumn on Sunday, but Winnipeg’s construction season is far from over with work continuing on regional roadways and residential streets.

The prolonged construction season is taking a bite out of business for Sara Dandeneau, owner of Frame Hair Design, a salon on Lipton Street in Wolseley.

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“Accessibility and safety have been concerns, for sure,” Dandeneau told CTV News. “Not having the visibility we’re used to, not having any foot traffic in front of the salon, and the sidewalk has been closed for the majority of the time.”

The Lipton Street renewal project – stretching from Portage Avenue to Palmerston Avenue – started at the beginning of July. According to the construction notice, it was supposed to take approximately eight weeks.

However, the project is far from being finished. Two of the three blocks haven’t been repaved, and the third is still waiting to be torn up.

“If I was a business owner promising I was going to do someone’s hair on a Wednesday and I didn’t do it until November, that would be a problem,” Dandeneau said.

The City of Winnipeg tabbed more than $138 million in this year’s budget to tackle around 150 kilometres of roads, bridges, and active transportation routes.

However, according to an email from the city’s public works department, only 30 per cent of projects were finished as of Sept. 23. The email also states 8.6 per cent of projects are nearing completion, but 60 per cent still have work ongoing – or haven’t started yet.

“That’s the sort of average, what it is now,” Janice Lukes, public works committee chair, told CTV News.

Lukes said 85 to 90 per cent of scheduled projects are typically completed when the ground freezes each year.

“There’s a lot of finishing work, and there’s a lot of projects winding up in September and October,” she said. “We just have to hope we continue having weather like this.”

Lukes said there have been some challenges this year including significant amounts of rainfall through the summer. She said delays are part of road construction season.

In the case of Lipton Street, the public works department said utility work pushed the project’s completion date back.

“We have to rely on external utilities – Hydro, fibre optics,” she explained. “Sometimes it’s just literally out of our control. We have to wait.”

The Lipton Street renewal project is expected to wrap up by mid-November. Dandeneau said businesses and residents should be provided more frequent updates and included in the consultation process.

“I think that there needs to be a little bit more care put into how it's affecting the residents and the businesses and see if there is different ways around that,” Dandeneau said. “See if there's different ways to add measures for accessibility and safety.”