MAYORAL
At a press conference, Troughton was initially unable to specify any promises the two candidates made that involved service cuts. After discussing the matter with colleagues, he told media promises to cut water and sewer rates, which would reduce city revenue, sparked the concern.
Vogiatzakis previously promised to reduce the current water and sewer rate by 10 per cent "right away," then freeze it for four years, while Klein promised to freeze the fee for two years.
Gillingham welcomed the union's endorsement and said it won't affect CUPE's next collective agreement with the city, which was recently referred to an independent arbitrator.
Both Klein and Vogiatzakis denied CUPE's statement about service cuts. "CUPE's (claims) are entirely meritless and deliberately misleading. I have never announced, I have never talked about any cuts," said Klein.
"I think it's ridiculous. I plan on doing completely the opposite ... I want to bring more services to the city," said Vogiatzakis.
On Friday morning, Vogiatzakis promised in-depth reviews of the major city planning documents OurWinnipeg 2045 and Complete Communities 2.0, as well as the city's Winnipeg Transit master plan and infill rules, if he's elected.
He said those plans led to decisions to add traffic-calming measures that snarl traffic, infill housing that doesn't fit in neighbourhoods and a bus system with too few stops.
Vogiatzakis also briefly promised to provide drivers one hour of free parking at all city meters and two hours of free parking in hospital lots, noting details would be shared at a future press conference.
Mayoral candidate Don Woodstock promises to rebuild the Arlington Bridge in 12 to 18 months, if he's elected.
Woodstock estimates the bridge, which shut down due to structural concerns in November 2023, can be replaced for a "strict fixed price" of $109 million.
"We need to connect our North End with our south again. We need to have less traffic on McPhillips (Street), free up the traffic. We need to have that part of the city moving again," said Woodstock.
Demolition of the bridge is underway, though city council has yet to approve funding to build a replacement. In 2024, the city expected replacing the bridge would cost $166 million, plus interest.
Woodstock said cutting consultant work from the project, using "24-7 continuous work shifts" and manufacturing prefabricated materials offsite would help speed up the work and reduce the price.
Election day is Oct. 28.
joyanne.pursaga@winnipegfreepress.com
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