The text of this report and accompanying maps, plates, and diagrams represent the draft of the Development Plan for Greater Winnipeg, a plan designed to guide the development of this metropolitan area in an orderly, economic and aesthetic manner, making the urban community a pleasurable place for work, relaxation, and the raising of one's family.
This report, and the accompanying maps, plates and diagrams have been prepared to provide the people of Greater Winnipeg with the information which, we believe, they will want to have regarding the proposed development of their community, and, in particular, with current proposals for the future use and re-use of land.
Many statistical and technical reports and studies were used in preparing this draft of the Plan, but it is assumed that these probably would be of secondary interest to the majority of citizens. For this reason, a minimum of technical data has been included, although reference is made throughout the report to various studies and reports prepared by the Corporation's staff and by other agencies. All of this material is available through the Director of Planning for anyone who may be interested in the more detailed information.
The Corporation hopes to encourage wide interest in this report. Arrangements can be made to discuss the effects of this draft Plan with any interested group. Once the Plan is formally adopted it is likely to affect most of us, either directly or indirectly.
The purpose of the Development Plan is set out in §.79 (1) of the Metropolitan Winnipeg Act; it is to promote:
the orderly growth and economic development of the metropolitan area and the additional zone in the manner most advantageous to, and that will best promote those amenities that are essential to, or desirable for, the well being of the inhabitants thereof...
As the Plan deals with a living organism -- the Metropolitan Community -- it cannot be regarded as something fixed and static. It will be revised and enlarged from time to time as conditions in the Metropolitan Area change. A Plan that is too rigid and inflexible could become in time a deterrent rather than a guide to sound development.
The Plan will have far-reaching effects. It will influence and regulate the activities of those who are directly or indirectly involved n the development of the community. It is the means by which the activities of many public and private agencies can be co-ordinated in order to ensure that the interests and amenities of all of the metropolitan citizens are protected.
A Progress Report published in November 1961 described the way in which the Plan was being prepared and the diagram at Plate I is reproduced from that report as an illustration of the planning function of the Corporation.
The main part of this report deals with the General Land Use Map. This map shows which areas will be developed or redeveloped, which areas will not be used for urban purposes and the routes of present and future metropolitan thoroughfares. In some instances where development is likely to take place in the near future, some streets that may not necessarily become metropolitan thoroughfares are indicated. These will form a system of municipal collector streets that will be needed to serve as tributaries to the metropolitan thoroughfare system.
The General Land Use Map forms a statement of the Corporation's policy for the future use of land and will therefore be of considerable value to both public and private agencies involved in the development of land as it will provide a basis for their planning.
The Development Plan is based on a series of factors which influence urban growth. While many of these factors may be regulated or shaped to meet planning desires, some important ones cannot be directly influenced by the planning agency. Population growth, while of prime importance to the planner, is an excellent example of this.
The Development Plan involves a continuing study of population growth and trends. Consideration has been given to projected changes in age and sex groups, and the net effect of immigration has also been considered. It is acknowledged that immigration can vary as a result o national trends and policies, but for the purpose of the Plan it has been assumed that the future effect of immigration will correspond with the trend over the past decade. A subsequent section deals with population growth in more detail.
The Plan acknowledges that we are dealing with an existing community of some half million people. This is not a Plan for a new community. The way in which the community has grown is the result of many factors and the effect of these, both beneficial and detrimental, cannot be ignored. Particular consideration has been given to the role which the two principal rivers have played in shaping the community in the past and the effect that the original "river lot" system of land ownership hs had and will continue to have on land development. This report, however, does not contain a description of the history of the development of the community, as this has been described in some detail by others. (1)
This factor includes preparations for development and the subsequent continuing provision of services to citizens by metropolitan and municipal government.
The Plan provides for a future street pattern based on earlier planning work (1) and on current work by the Corporation's staff. Transportation systems, such as expressways and rapid transit, must be based on a thorough study of the effects f alternative systems. This study is being carried out and proposals based on this work will form a later addition to the plan. Map No. 1 shows our major thoroughfare proposals.
Planning work on the expansion of sewer and water facilities had been started by the Greater Winnipeg Water and Sanitary Districts before the creation of the Corporation and has been carried forward by the Corporation since the date of take-over. The reports (2) which are the result of this work have influenced the Plan. As they deal with the provision of facilities with a life expectancy in excess of 25 years, the maximum capacity of these facilities exceeds the anticipated need for the period covered by this Plan. The Plan will be reviewed and revised at five year intervals and the planning period will be extended a further five years. In this way the additional capacity will be used up and requirements for the construction of major facilities will be indicated well in advance of need. The servicing plans themselves will be reviewed periodically and are sufficiently flexible themselves to allow amendments in the location of facilities if changing circumstances warrant it. Maps Nos. 2 and 3 show the present and future water distribution and sewer services.
It is anticipated that all but a comparatively few residents will be served with public sewer and water. Methods of sewage disposal will have some effect on the types of industry which can be located in the industrial areas shown on the Plan. The Zoning By-law based on this Plan will establish any special servicing provisions applicable to the industrial area, and complement the existing regulations relating to Industrial Waste Licensing.
An understanding of social trends serves to indicate future demands for educational and recreational facilities. Changes in what is considered to be desirable residential environment affect the density of residential areas and therefore the amount of and that they will require. The social forces which motivate residential redevelopment affect the physical redevelopment plans. (1)
The Plan provides for the continuing expansion of our economic base, and commercial and industrial activity which provides employment and productive capacity -- the true measure of the community's wealth. Our wide diversification of economic activities is a major community asset. It means that we can offer a labor force with a wide range of skills. Geographic location gives us a considerable advantage as a centre for communications and distribution. In common with many other communities, the high price of industrial land and inter-municipal competition for industry can act as deterrents to logical industrial planning. The fact that we tend to be a "branch office" community has some definite disadvantages but a solution to this problem cannot be found through a physical plan. The Plan can however, give assistance to those who are working to solve this and other problems related to the field of industrial promotion.
The Plan envisages a reasonably compact urban area with some areas of low density development related to existing village communities. A subsequent section on the Additional Zone deals with the village communities in more detail. The Plan differentiates between “low density development” and “sprawl”. Basically, one is planned for and the other is the result of the lack of control over the use of land.
The economic aspects of the provision of both public and private services are directly related to the density of development. The Plan acknowledges that economic considerations are of major importance. The community must be able to pay for all o the services it wants. (1)
During the next 25 years it is unlikely that the community will grow to such a size that we shall have to consider limiting expansion. Continuing consideration is being given to the optimum size of the community and this question will be discussed at the time of the first five year review of the Plan.
How many people live in Metropolitan Winnipeg? How many are there likely to be by 1986? The answers to these questions provide the starting point for any serious planning for the future development of the area.
Perhaps no other kind of research has a more direct and personal effect on the daily lives of people and the environment in which they lie. Whether we deal with such questions as how taxes are distributed to communities, or how the needs for public services and facilities are anticipated and met, or where new churches and stores and factories might be built, or even how many automobiles might be sold in a given year -- the answers to all of these questions depend on the existance of reliable data about population, existing and future.
It is important to realize, however, that population studies are not static, that they are limited by the quality and availability of basic data and that they might be subject to continual revision in the light of changing conditions.
The Dominion Census, undertaken every five years, provides our basic source of information about population.
Fortunately the date of the last Census was in 1961 and we have therefore a recent and accurate figure to use as a basis for estimating the future population of the Metropolitan Area.
In 1901 there were 48,000 people in Metropolitan Winnipeg.
Final counts received from the Dominion Bureau of Statistics show that in 1961 the Metropolitan Winnipeg Census had a population of 475,989.
Although the Metropolitan Winnipeg Census Area does not coincide with the political boundaries of the entire Metropolitan Area, the difference is so small that, to all intents and purposes, the population of the Census Area may be accepted as that of the Metropolitan Winnipeg Area. As the Census Area is the only are for which statistical information in detailed form is available, it has been used as the basis for all our projections.
During this year it is anticipated that the population of the Metropolitan Winnipeg Census Area will pass the half million mark. Based upon trends of the past five years, this population growth is continuing at the rate of a little more than one person per hour, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. By 1986 the area will have added more than 400,000 people, an increase of 80 per cent in 23 years. Plate 2 shows the anticipated growth of the Metropolitan Area to 1986.
Rough estimates indicate that while the City of Winnipeg is likely to grow at a very slow pace because of the limited amount of land available within the city for residential expansion, the suburbs will more than double their population in the next 23 years. North Kildonan, Charleswood, Assiniboia, Old Kildonan, East and West St. Paul and Tuxedo will more than treble their population by 1986. While the predicted growth of the six suburban cities and the Municipality of Fort Garry will be less than that of the other suburban municipalities, the cities will have the greatest numerical increases, with an additional 250,000 people by 1986.
A total of approximately 38 square miles (at least 4½ homes to the gross acre) will be required for the more than 100,000 homesites which will be needed for the projected growth of population i the next 23 years. This is greater than the total area which is currently developed for residential purposes. Although any of the factors influencing the development of specific areas have not yet been evaluated, preliminary studies indicate that Assiniboia, Charleswood, Fort Garry, and Transcona will be among the areas which will develop most rapidly.
RESIDENTIAL LAND NEEDS 1961-1966
Teenagers and Senior Citizens to increase according to the predicted age structure shown in Plates 3 and 4, teenagers will make up a greater proportion of the area's total population in 1986 than they do now. The same projections indicate that those over 64 years of age will contribute an ever increasing percentage o the total population. While these predictions may gladden the hearts of the cosmetic, record or drug industries, they also indicate a greater load upon the schools and facilities for the aged.
There are approximately 190,000 people in the labor force in Metropolitan Winnipeg today. It is anticipated that, by 1986, this force will contain some 285,000 people, an increase of about 50 per cent. This increase does not keep pace with the anticipated increase in the total Metropolitan population. The difference is largely accounted for by the increase in the teen-age and senior-citizen groups, and by continuing decreases in the male labor participation rates in the 14 to 19, 20 to 24 and 65 plus groups. This, of course, suggests that more people will be staying at school longer and more will be retiring earlier.
At present, there are more than 136,000 motor vehicles in the Metropolitan Area. This represents 296 motor vehicles for every 1,000 persons. If this ratio remains the same, there will be nearly twice as many motor vehicles in the Metropolitan Area by 1986. There is every indication that the ratio will, in fact, increase as more and more families become owners of two or three automobiles. The need for improved thoroughfares is, therefor, obvious.
The Metropolitan Area has been divided into six sectors for the purpose of preparing the General Land Use Map. The boundaries of the sectors, with one exception, have been drawn using readily identifiable physical features such as rivers and main railway lines. The one exception is Sector 6, here the boundaries have been drawn to cover all of the land usually considered as the central core of the Metropolitan Area. Maps for each of these sectors follow this page.
These have been shown in terms of density so that the number of dwellings or persons in each of the areas can be calculated. The areas shown for residential development can accommodate the anticipated population expansion. In addition, allowance has been made for some fluctuation in population growth. It must be emphasized that the General Land Use Map is not a zoning map and the designation of an area as "Density 2", for example, does not mean that the whole area will be developed for two-family dwellings, it means that it will develop at a density of 6–12 dwellings per acre.
The following table indicates the range of densities in each type of area and gives examples of what the range of density means in terms of existing residential areas:
| Density | Dwellings Per Acre | Persons Per Acre | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| D.1 | 1–6 | 4–23 |
Pepplerloaf Crescent, Charleswood, Tuxedo River Heights, Winnipeg Wildwood, Fort Garry |
| D.2 | 6–12 | 23–46 |
Kenaston — Corydon Area Crescentwood, Winnipeg |
| D.3 | 12–20 | 30–50 | Fort Rouge, Winnipeg |
| D.4 | 20+ | 45+ |
High rise apartments Wellington Crescent - Roslyn Road District |
Park and school requirements are based on anticipated population, existing sites being shown in their actual shape and additional sites being shown as green circles. The circles are intended to show approximate location only, the actual site will be selected when detailed local plans are prepared. The demand for school sites is based on school forecast studies which have been prepared in consultation with both elementary and secondary school boards. (1) The future parks shown are intended to serve local needs. Future metropolitan parks are not shown as these will be comparatively large areas of land the the disclosure of their proposed location could result in land speculation detrimental to the interest of the metropolitan residents for whom the parks are intended. It is proposed to increase the metropolitan park acreage by some 200 acres each year during the first five-year planning period. (1)
Two types of commercial areas are shown in Sectors 1-5. The Local Commercial areas are intended to serve the day-to-day needs of the immediate area and would include drug and hardware stores, small groceries, beauty parlors and laundry or dry-cleaning pick-up stores, to name typical examples. The District Commercial areas would serve a larger trade area and offer a greater variety of goods and services. In most cases a supermarket would be the prime retail establishment.
In all new areas a "shopping centre" type of development will be encouraged so that communal parking facilities can be provided. The aesthetic advantages of a group of stores designed as a unit can have an important effect on the appearance of a residential area. The Plan does not envisage the continuation of strip commercial development along both sides of major traffic routes. Past experience indicates that this type of development with the resulting conflict between the use of the street for both parking and the moving of traffic, and the dispersal of the commercial activity, cannot be considered to be in the best interests of the community as a whole. Again the disadvantages from the point of view of appearance cannot be overlooked.
These are shown based on anticipated need and the availability of services required by industry. Where possible major thoroughfares or wide power line rights-of-way have been used to provide separation from residential areas where these adjoin.
The Plan shows industrial areas generally and does not attempt to differentiate between areas f varying industrial use. This will be done by the Zoning By-law that will follow the adoption of the Plan. The Zoning By-law will establish the types of industry for each area bearing in mind the type of services available or to be provided and the degree of compatibility with adjoining development; for example, it is considered that a modern light industrial or warehouse building on a carefully landscaped site is not incompatible with residential development. Other regulations such as Industrial Waste Licensing will of course be used to strengthen the Zoning requirements.
Although industrial areas are distributed in different parts of the metropolitan area, no attempt has been made to provide each city or municipality with its own industrial area. It is considered that the Plan must be based on a "metropolitan" approach and that the problems of distribution of industrial tax revenue should be dealt with by a fiscal rather than a physical planning program. The Plan is concerned with the community twenty-five years hence and by them inter-governmental fiscal policies are certain to have changed.
The agricultural classification is intended to include all of the "open land"; these include farming and market gardening and large public and private recreational areas. Public sewer and water services will not be provided and other services will be of a standard appropriate to a sparsely populated area.
In addition to the areas where agricultural uses of all kinds are likely to continue throughout the planning period, areas are designated as "Residential Reserve" (A.R.R.) and "Industrial Reserve" (A.M.R.). The purpose of these designations is to indicate that although they will continue in agricultural use for some time, their ultimate use will be for residential or industrial purposes.
The prospects and problems of this area are unique, it is here that the majority of the rebuilding will take place and in this area it is essential that public and private plans move forward in step. The Plan indicates the uses of land in general terms and attempts to define the limits of the central business district. Unless the central business district is defined, it can continue to spread outwards thus diluting the intensity of activity in the core of the metropolitan area and wasting the considerable public and private capital that has been invested in this area.
Another second of this report illustrates the aesthetic considerations of downtown redevelopment and indicates the standard to be achieved. The Plan does not include detailed architectural schemes for downtown as the rebuilding of this area will be financed largely by private capital. In these circumstances, we prefer to work co-operatively with the designers working for private interest in formulating ideas for downtown redevelopment. The section of this report dealing with Urban Appearance indicates the quality of urban design that should be achieved and following the adoption of the Plan steps will be taken to ensure that design standards are maintained. This has been discussed with the Manitoba Association of Architects, the Professional Engineers' Association of Manitoba and the Winnipeg Real Estate Board and an acceptable method has been evolved.
Special consideration has been given to riverbanks and creek valleys as these represent a valuable natural asset in addition to providing an outlet for storm drainage. Land that is liable to be flooded will be zoned as "Flood Plain" to prevent development. Other open land along the riverbanks and in creek valley, particularly if it is outside the line of primary flood defence, should not be developed.
The General Land Use Map indicates continuous green areas along certain sections of riverbank, particularly where land presently in public ownership can be extended. It is unlikely that it would be financially possible to acquire large sections of developed riverbank property for public use in the immediate future but this is a long-term objective and as a step towards this aim the Plan will require that any land now held by local governments should not be sold for private development.
At the time of preparing this draft report the Corporation is considering a policy for the acquisition of riverbank land, it is likely that policy will be established and incorporated in the Plan before it is formally approved.
An interim report (1) has been prepared on the Corporation's planning and administration responsibilities in the whole field of urban renewal. This interim report is now being reviewed and once a final report has been prepared, probably early in 1964, it will be ...
TO BE CONTINUED...