1 week Ago By Malak Abas
When Furby Street homeowners Margot Harding and Sean Kowal learned an apartment building could be built on the parking lot behind the former Sherbrook Inn, it felt like a breath of fresh air for the neighbourhood they’ve lived in for more than 20 years. Read this article for free: Already have an account? To continue reading, please subscribe: * When Furby Street homeowners Margot Harding and Sean Kowal learned an apartment building could be built on the parking lot behind the former Sherbrook Inn, it felt like a breath of fresh air for the neighbourhood they’ve lived in for more than 20 years. Read unlimited articles for free today: Already have an account? When Furby Street homeowners Margot Harding and Sean Kowal learned an apartment building could be built on the parking lot behind the former Sherbrook Inn, it felt like a breath of fresh air for the neighbourhood they’ve lived in for more than 20 years.
“That parking lot’s been nothing but problems, it’s an eyesore,” Kowal said Friday. “They’re making it housing, we need housing, right? That’s a big crisis with this country right now.” RUTH BONNEVILLE / FREE PRESS A proposed six-storey mixed-use building could rise on the site of a parking lot behind the Sherbrook Inn, which has been undergoing renovations since closing last year.
A public notice has been issued to nearby residents about an open house, to be held Jan. 30, to discuss a proposed six-storey mixed-use building. Harding and Kowal, who plan to attend the meeting, live opposite the parking lot.
They’ve witnessed dangerous activity and violent incidents at the location. “There are fights in the parking lot ..
. we get people passing out in the street all the time,” Harding said. “So we’re happy that something at least positive is possibly going to happen there.
” The letter says the building would include 86 suites, of which 15 to 25 per cent would be designated as affordable; parking stalls and indoor secured bike storage; and a commercial storefront “aimed at promoting pedestrian engagement and local business.” The letter has no contact information and does not name the developer, but Neil Soorsma, who purchased the hotel in May, said local architecture firm Cibinel Architecture was handling the project. “It’s been identified, from what I know, in the past, as a place that should be developed,” Soorsma said.
Cibinel Architecture didn’t respond by press time. Soorsma, who also owns the Royal Albert Arms, offered few details but said he was approached about the idea and it seems like a “reasonable” way to use the parking lot, which he says largely sits empty. “The area needs housing.
I think any housing we build in the city is a good thing,” he said. If the project proceeds, he will sell the parking lot to the developer. The hotel, which has been undergoing renovations since he purchased it, will not be affected.
The Sherbrook Inn closed its bar and beer vendor last year. Soorsma said his plans for the inn, which include a refurbished bar, beer vendor and “upper-scale” hotel rooms, are underway. “We’ve quieted it down.
We used to have people causing problems, it’s largely gone now,” he said. “It’s coming along nicely. I’m happy.
It’s going to take a while.” Sent weekly from the heart of Turtle Island, an exploration of Indigenous voices, perspectives and experiences. West Broadway Community Organization executive director Kelly Frazer, said they were approached about the development at the same time as residents and plan to attend next week’s meeting.
She said the organization’s housing stakeholders group will discuss the project once they have more details. “In general, densification of the neighbourhood is good,” she said. “It seems like there is space there for a new development.
” The letter does not include a construction timeline. malak.abas@freepress.
mb.ca Malak Abas is a city reporter at the . Born and raised in Winnipeg’s North End, she led the campus paper at the University of Manitoba before joining the in 2020.
. Every piece of reporting Malak produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the ‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about , and .
Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider . Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism.
Thank you for your support. Malak Abas is a city reporter at the . Born and raised in Winnipeg’s North End, she led the campus paper at the University of Manitoba before joining the in 2020.
. Every piece of reporting Malak produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the ‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about , and .
Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider . Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism.
Thank you for your support. Advertisement Advertisement.
