Manitoba·NewWinnipeg’s plans to build an apartment complex on a parking lot can only proceed if the neighbouring Granite Curling Club is satisfied with the number of parking spots it would receive, the municipal board has ruled.Club must be satisfied with spaces for work to proceed: municipal boardIan Froese · CBC News · Posted: Nov 14, 2025 3:03 PM EST | Last Updated: 27 minutes agoListen to this articleEstimated 2 minutesThe audio version of this article is generated by text-to-speech, a technology based on artificial intelligence.The Granite Curling Club will need to approve the parking plan in order for the development of a new 111-unit apartment complex nearby to proceed. (Warren Kay/CBC)Winnipeg’s plans to build an apartment complex on a parking lot can only proceed if the neighbouring Granite Curling Club is satisfied with the number of parking spots it receives, the Manitoba Municipal Board has ruled.In a new 47-page decision, the provincial appeals body has ruled a permit for the 111-unit apartment complex can only be issued after the creation of an “adequate” parking plan that supports the “ongoing operational sustainability of the club, to the satisfaction of the Granite Curling Club, the Director of Public Works, and the Director of Planning, Property and Development.”The decision by the unelected body brings the city and curling club back to the drawing board on the issue that’s stalled this affordable housing project from the beginning: parking. The city’s plan to build more housing on a lot it owns has drawn opposition from the board of the curling club, which says it would take away more than half of Granite’s parking spaces. That would mean a loss of revenue and could drive away members, threatening the club’s long-term survival, according to the board.The plan for the building, built by the University of Winnipeg Community Renewal Corporation 2.0, is to have 55 market-rent units, another 12 at 79 per cent of the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation’s median market rent, and 14 at 69 per cent of that rate. The remaining 30 units would offer rent geared to income. (UWCRC 2.0)In its decision, the municipal board says its recommendation for an “adequate” parking plan should be a “reasonable” compromise that is “negotiated in good faith” between the city and curling club.The two parties have also been told to find “accessible” and “ongoing parking” to replace any parking spaces lost as a result of the new apartment complex.It disagrees with the city’s contention that amending the city’s bylaw with this new requirement creates a dangerous precedent that erodes the property and ownership rights of developers. It said the relationship between the city and the curling club, “as stewards of a beloved heritage asset,” is unique. Of the 111 units planned for the affordable housing project, 56 of them are supposed to have rents set below the market rate. ABOUT THE AUTHORIan Froese covers the Manitoba Legislature and provincial politics for CBC News in Winnipeg. He also serves as president of the legislature’s press gallery. You can reach him at ian.froese@cbc.ca. Twitter: @ianfroese
Granite Curling Club holds the hammer in dispute over new apartment complex: parking
