Developer Halts Ambitious Apartment Project, Sells Prime Lot

Plans for a significant mixed-use apartment tower at 634 Portage Ave. in Winnipeg have been abandoned. The site, once occupied by a car dealership, was poised to become one of the tallest buildings outside the downtown area in decades, but the developer, P3 Realty, has decided to place the property on the market for $6.5 million.

The 21-storey apartment building project had been in the works since at least 2021, when the developer sought to rezone the lot. Despite receiving the necessary approvals for a structure between 21 and 30 storeys, the project will not move forward, leaving the future of the site uncertain.

Urban planning expert Jino Distasio from the University of Winnipeg expressed disappointment over the halted project but noted that such changes are not uncommon in the development landscape. “I would like to see this lot filled in with the right type of housing for West Broadway,” he stated. “It is a big beautiful lot on Portage Avenue which needs to be more than a vacant lot.”

Had the project proceeded, it would have marked the first major residential construction in the area since the 26-storey building at 11 Evergreen Pl. was completed in 1984. The proposal included plans for 374 residential units, over 6,000 square feet of commercial space on the ground floor, and a parking facility with 75 stalls.

While specific reasons for the developer’s withdrawal from the project remain undisclosed, Darryl Harrison, director of stakeholder engagement at the Winnipeg Construction Association, noted that rising construction costs have been a significant challenge in the industry. “The pandemic created a significant increase in construction costs, which has since created a new normal,” Harrison explained. He reported that construction material costs have seen inflationary pressure, with increases of 3.69 percent in the first quarter of 2023 and 3.8 percent in the second.

In recent years, the number of building permits in Winnipeg has decreased by approximately four percent, with a six percent drop in multi-unit residential housing permits. Despite these setbacks, Harrison remains optimistic, pointing to anticipated public infrastructure projects in the next five years, focusing on sectors such as defence, housing, and health.

In a related development, Winnipeg City Councillor Brian Mayes has proposed that the city should encourage developers to repurpose existing residential buildings rather than demolishing them. As chair of the civic climate action and resilience committee, Mayes emphasized the importance of sustainability, stating, “The greenest building is the one that is already standing.” He aims to promote the adaptive reuse of existing structures to reduce landfill waste, suggesting that current zoning policies do not sufficiently support these efforts.

The motion he introduced, which passed through the Riel community committee, calls for an examination of land-use incentives that could foster the preservation of existing buildings. This proposal will now be reviewed by the property and development committee.

As the future of the Portage Avenue site remains uncertain, stakeholders continue to navigate a challenging environment marked by fluctuating costs and shifting development priorities.