Mayoral hopeful Woodstock promises fast-track approvals for Indigenous-led projects

Candidate Don Woodstock pointed to the Naawi-Oodena project at the former Kapyong Barracks site as an example of Indigenous-led projects he would champion.

MAYORAL candidate Don Woodstock promised Monday to create a new municipal office to “level the playing field” and fast-track city approvals for Indigenous led-projects.

The office would create a direct pipeline for those projects when undergoing zoning regulations and setting up municipal services, such as sewage, so development timelines can be met or sped up, he said Monday.

The office would also be an “important step” in restoring equity for Indigenous developments, Woodstock said.

“If you’re Indigenous, I’m going to make sure that I put in place something that will tell you that under no circumstances you’ll be discriminated against because of your nationality, race, colour, creed,” he said.

Woodstock highlighted the Naawi-Oodena project rising on the former Kapyong Barracks site, which is expected to provide about 5,000 homes, as an example of the importance of supporting Indigenous-led projects.

He also said he would ensure equal representation for Indigenous businesses when applying for city contracts by assigning a weighted score to an application. The measure would also improve transparency for the contract awarding process, Woodstock said.

Neither incumbent candidate Scott Gillingham nor challenger Kevin Klein scheduled any campaign announcements Monday ahead of the Oct. 28 municipal election.

Noah Redden, who is also running for mayor, said he would create an accessibility advisory committee, composed of people with disabilities and advocates, to provide input on municipal policy.

He said city officials need to be informed about disability and mobility issues.

“There’s so many things in the city that could be more accessible, and I think there just really isn’t a good method for people with disabilities to express those concerns,” Redden said.

He cited the loss of bus stops near long-term care homes after Winnipeg Transit’s network overhaul as a sore spot for people with mobility issues.

Redden said he would also create an arm’s-length accessibility ombudsman to investigate complaints and make recommendations to city council and administration about issues raised by the public and city employees.

Mayoral candidate Umar Hayat promised he would create an independent road-construction standards and accountability committee to review practices for building and maintaining roads.

The committee would have a $400,000 annual budget, he said in a news release.

matthew.frank@winnipegfreepress.com

Record-breaking turnout for advanced voting

MORE people have voted in advance voting for Winnipeg’s municipal election than ever before, despite election day still being more than one week away.

As of Sunday evening, 25,514 residents already voted during the advanced voting period, leading up to the Oct. 28 election, said the city of Winnipeg in a Monday news release.

That’s the most votes ever tallied in advance voting for a municipal council and school boards election in the city.

A single-day advance voting location record of 1,879 votes was also set on Oct. 16 at the St. Vital Centre early voting location.

The city says it has provided more voting opportunities for advance voting, which is running for four days up from three days in recent elections.

Advance voting polling locations will be open 4 p.m. until 8 p.m. daily in all 15 Council Wards running Monday until Thursday of this week.