Downtown Winnipeg Bay building one step closer to heritage status

The downtown Hudson's Bay Company store is one step closer to becoming an official part of Winnipeg's heritage.

City council's property committee voted Monday to add the Portage Avenue landmark to the city's list of historic resources.

The move would protect several aspects of the six-storey structure, which was completed in 1926. Those elements include limestone exterior walls, the outside canopy, the curved elevator lobby and other aspects of the interior.

• Committee urged to add 'iconic' Hudson's Bay to list of historical Winnipeg buildings

​The company opposed the designation, arguing in a letter it was too costly to maintain the character elements of the downtown Bay.

The committee vote was two to one, with Couns. Janice Lukes (Waverley West) and Sherri Rollins (Fort Rouge-East Fort Garry) voting in favour. Coun. Kevin Klein (Charleswood-Tuxedo-Westwood) voted in opposition.

Committee chair Brian Mayes (St. Vital) stayed out of the vote to avoid a perception of conflict, as he said he took part in an earlier vote at another committee.

City council still has to approve the move. 

Manitoba Club added to historic list

The committee also voted to add the Manitoba Club, built in 1905 on Broadway, to the historical resources list.

The Manitoba Club — whose members lobbied in favour of building a heritage park to commemorate nearby Upper Fort Garry — opposed the designation, which moves on to council's executive policy committee before being voted on by council as a whole.