City began lengthy process to seize Manwin Hotel before massive fire

In the year between an order to force tenants out of the dilapidated Manwin Hotel and the building’s fiery demise this week, the City of Winnipeg says it regularly inspected the site and had begun a process to seize it.

“We’ve issued lots of orders for this property while it was under this ownership.… We have 53 onsite inspections from the time it was vacant over 33 different dates,” said Corey Burgess, acting administrative co-ordinator for bylaw enforcement for the city’s community services department.

Nine licensing and bylaw enforcement orders were issued since the property became vacant. Burgess said they were linked to problems such as graffiti and garbage piling up, some of which were corrected.

The city ordered tenants to move out of the building at 655 Main St. last January, citing extensive safety concerns, including structural and fire-protection problems. Its owner lost an appeal of that decision in February.

Last year, one resident estimated 32 people lived in the building at the time of the vacate order.

A fire destroyed the building early Wednesday.

The city says it has also taken the first steps to seize the property. Through its tax sale process, the city can take over the title of a structure with unpaid property taxes.

“The taxes are owing…. (But) before the city would be in a position to apply to take title through tax sale, we’re looking at probably in excess of another year or more,” said Kelly Happychuk, chief of permits and inspections for Winnipeg planning, property and development.

Traditionally, the city could start that process once someone fails to pay property taxes for three years, which city council recently reduced to two years. That change should shorten the overall process from five years to four.

Owners are legally responsible for maintaining their properties, and the city typically won’t order a demolition unless there is an immediate danger, such as the risk of collapse, said Happychuk.

A city contractor will demolish and clean up the Manwin site, though work paused late Wednesday afternoon because the property appears to contain asbestos, said Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service Chief Christian Schmidt.

A provincially approved safety plan is needed before site remediation can resume, though Schmidt stressed the city plans to proceed as quickly as possible.

“Our department is going to do everything that we can to ensure that this work can be expedited,” he said.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

Schmidt said there were 220 fires at vacant properties in Winnipeg throughout 2025, based on preliminary numbers.

While the WFPS master plan recommends increasing the city’s number of fire prevention officers from 21 full-time positions to 32, Schmidt said the staffing hike has not occurred due to “budgetary constraints.”

The city has faced some criticism over a surge in vacant properties and massive rubble piles from those that burned down, with some left to fester for months or years.

Spence neighbourhood resident Cheryl Martens said there are eight vacant lots on one block of Furby Street.

“These are depressing buildings to have on your street or in your neighbourhood.… It’s incredibly discouraging to walk by buildings that are in horrible states of disrepair,” said Martens.

The resident said she’d like the city to find ways to get the properties repaired or removed sooner.

Martens hopes the latest fire will help trigger redevelopment.

“When a building like that is gone, that leaves some possibility,” she said.

Mayor Scott Gillingham noted the city has taken numerous steps to crack down on vacant and derelict buildings in recent years. A “vacancy to vitality” plan approved in December increased vacant building fees, reduced the timeline to seize homes with unpaid taxes and formalized a program that allows owners to give their “distressed residential properties” to the city.

Gillingham said the city is committed to ensuring empty or neglected properties are cleaned up but must respect property rights when doing so.

“It’s a very serious thing for any order of government to be moving in to take someone’s property,” he said.

The mayor said he expects all rubble to be cleared from the Manwin Hotel site soon.

“I believe this will… not be months. It will not be years. It will be done as quickly as possible, whether that’s days or weeks,” said Gillingham.

The property’s owner, Akim Kambamba, did not respond to an interview request.

Kambamba briefly listed the site for sale in 2025, at a price of $2.8 million.

Realtor Brad Gross, who listed the property, said he’s not sure what the owner’s plans are after the fire.

He said Kambamba invested in architectural plans for the building but found it challenging to get repairs done, in part because various city officials offered differing views on the work needed.

“It’s always a different set of eyes on it. They should have just one city employee per building,” said Gross, adding it was disturbing to see the building unused for months prior to the fire.

“What boggles me is all these empty buildings (sit there)… and we still have people (living) on the streets in this weather,” he said.

Gillingham said he stands by the order to vacate the structure, noting the fire could have proven deadly if people were still living in the building when it started.

“We have avoided a huge tragedy by evacuating it,” he said.

Happychuk said his department has worked to simplify city orders to make them easier to follow.

joyanne.pursaga@freepress.mb.ca

X: @joyanne_pursaga