Purim treats shared with others

Volunteers with the grassroots, non-profit organization Urban Wagons have been walking the downtown streets of Winnipeg every Monday evening for the last three years offering seasonal clothing, self-care products, bottled water, hot soup, plastic wrapped sandwiches, granola bars and fruit to any unsheltered and vulnerable individuals that they encounter.

This week their food offerings will include a new item: triangular shaped fruit or poppyseed filled pastries called hamantashen. Hamantashen are the traditional food associated with the Jewish holiday of Purim.

Purim is a widely celebrated, joyous festival commemorating events that occurred in the fourth century BCE after Haman, an adviser to the Persian King Ahasuerus, plotted, with the king’s assent, to murder the regime’s Jewish population. Haman’s plan was foiled when the king’s wife, Queen Esther, a secret Jew, risked her life by revealing her true identity to her husband and entreated him not to annihilate her people. Thanks to her courage, the Jewish population of Persia was saved and Haman was punished for his malevolent machinations.

The story of Purim is recounted in the Old Testament Book of Esther, or Megillah Esther, which is read aloud in synagogue on the eve of and during the day of the holiday. Listening to the reading of the Megillah is one of the main mitzvot, or commandments, associated with Purim, which begins this year on the evening of March 2.

Mayor encouraged after downtown housing unit approvals reach 15-year high

The city approved more than 1,000 new downtown housing units last year, marking a 15-year high, while work continues to help entice people to move to the area.

Building permits were issued for 1,040 new downtown dwelling units in 2025, nearly double the 596 issued in 2018 and greatly improved from the 141 granted during the post-pandemic slowdown in 2022, city data show.

Mayor Scott Gillingham said the permit data reflects renewed interest in developing downtown.

“Before the pandemic, Winnipeg’s downtown had a lot of momentum and now we really see that momentum is really strong again,” he said.

Bread Box bake shop brings tastes of Fort Garry Hotel to general public

Ida Albo is on a roll.

After opening a yoga studio and then a skincare clinic at 280 Fort St., the Winnipeg entrepreneur has added a bake shop to the building. The Bread Box had a soft opening on Wednesday and celebrated its grand opening on Thursday.

The menu features items served in the Fort Garry Hotel, located one kilometre south of the shop, where Albo is an owner and the managing partner. The menu includes the hotel’s organic sourdough bâtard and country loaf, made using a 13-year-old wild Manitoba grape starter.

Guests have booked stays at the hotel specifically to stock up on the bâtard (an oval or oblong loaf), Albo said, adding she’s excited to finally share the Fort Garry’s food beyond the hotel’s walls.

Exhibit connects traditional and contemporary Métis beadwork artists

Suspended from the ceiling in Gallery 1C03 at the University of Winnipeg is an octopus bag, created by Métis visual artist Claire Johnston.

Airport land development expected to draw massive investment, create jobs in aerospace, aviation

Government and industry leaders are banking on a $32-million airport land development to cement Winnipeg as a national leader in economic growth and trade.

In a joint announcement Friday, the federal and provincial governments, alongside the Winnipeg Airports Authority and the City of Winnipeg, outlined a plan to develop 127 acres of land west of the airport into direct-access runways.

“You can think of this as beachfront property. This is very valuable for businesses in key sectors such as aerospace, aviation, trade enabling and logistics that need that direct proximity to air side operations,” said Nick Hays, the WAA’s president and CEO.

“It is very unusual to have an airport… with that scale of land right next to the runway that has not been developed. Today’s announcement is about putting in the investment that services that land to unlock that opportunity.”

Almost 12% of city parks, open spaces in poor condition: report

Nearly 12 per cent of the city’s parks and open-space assets are in poor or very poor condition and it would cost $108.5 million to replace them, a new city report says.

Data centres and Manitoba: a cautionary tale

Alongside the rapidly expanding use of AI in everyday life, there’s a growing awareness that the technology also comes with extreme, big-picture threats to the things we need more: fresh water, affordable clean energy and a healthy information ecosystem.

Young woman says she was on social media ‘all day long’ as a child in landmark addiction trial

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A young woman who is battling against social media giants took the stand Thursday to testify about her experience using the platforms as she was growing up, saying she was on social media “all day long” as a child.

The now 20-year-old, who has been identified in court documents as KGM, says her early use of social media addicted her to the technology and exacerbated depression and suicidal thoughts. Meta and YouTube are the two remaining defendants in the case, which TikTok and Snap have settled.

The case, along with two others, has been selected as a bellwether trial, meaning its outcome could impact how thousands of similar lawsuits against social media companies are likely to play out.

KGM, or Kaley, as her lawyers have called her during the trial, started using YouTube at age 6 and Instagram at age 9.

Burger King to bring AI-based voice coach to Canada later this year

When you stop at a Burger King later this year, staff may have an artificial intelligence-based coach in their ears.

Restaurant Brands International, the owner of the fast-food giant, revealed Thursday that it is bringing its new Patty tool to Canada in the second half of 2026.

Patty is a voice-based assistant which will be piped through the headsets Burger King staff wear, listening to their conversations and prodding them toward more attentive customer service and efficiency.

The tool will be able to remind employees how to make food orders and help them upsell customers.

Eight of 10 people using bus to get downtown unhappy after system overhaul, BIZ survey reveals

“The level of dissatisfaction — that is dire,” said Coun. Sherri Rollins. “Winnipeggers are… voting with their feet. They’re not taking transit anymore. We’re losing revenue.”

City report recommends reducing residential speed limit to 40 km/h

Winnipeg drivers may have to ease up on the gas pedal when they head down residential streets and minor collector roads.

The City of Winnipeg is looking at making the default speed limit 40 km/h, from the current 50 km/h.

A report to be presented to the public works committee next week suggests the change could improve safety for pedestrians, cyclists and others.

Committee chair Coun. Janice Lukes says she supports the recommendation, but stressed amendments to the provincial Highway Traffic Act are required before it could take effect.

Métis leaders unveil 1920s model dog sled repatriated from Vatican

OTTAWA - Métis leaders on Wednesday unveiled a model dog sled repatriated to their communities after more than a century in the Vatican collection.

The sled, made in the 1920s of leather, wood and glass beads, was one of 62 items repatriated to Indigenous Peoples from the Vatican last year after decades of calls for their return.

“We’re not simply opening a box. We’re welcoming something very special home. We’re beginning a new chapter, a chapter that’s grounded in relationship, kinship and connection,” Métis National Council president Victoria Pruden said during the ceremony.

“These are not artifacts in the Western sense. These are carriers of memory – that Kiyas Kiskiowin Oma – remembering who we are, our memories returning. They hold the imprint of the hands that made them, and the communities who once knew them.”

Housing affordability challenges remain despite recent improvements: CMHC

A new analysis from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. shows housing affordability challenges have eased in recent years but still remain at historic highs, and have even spread to other major cities.

The national housing agency says affordability issues are no longer limited to Canada's largest cities and have spread to other areas such as Ottawa, Montreal and Halifax. One of the key factors, CMHC said, was the impact of labour mobility brought on by remote work during the COVID-19 pandemic, which has persisted even as the job market has changed.

"Affordability started recovering slightly since 2023, when it reached historical lows. For home ownership, we observed improved affordability, while for renters we saw stabilization over the last two years," said Mathieu Laberge, CMHC chief economist and senior vice-president of housing insights, in a news release Wednesday.

"Even with these improvements, we cannot overlook how much housing affordability has eroded in recent years, especially in Ottawa, Montreal and Halifax, clearly demonstrating that Canada's housing affordability crisis is no longer limited to Toronto and Vancouver."

Councillor calls for permanent bike lanes on Wellington stretch

The chair of Winnipeg’s public works committee wants the city to scrap plans for temporary bike lanes on part of Wellington Crescent and immediately proceed with a permanent protected route.

Coun. Janice Lukes wants permanent lanes to be installed in 2027 if her proposal is approved, although some proponents worry there will be more delays if plans change for a road they consider unsafe.

“I know this is frustrating and it’s challenging, but we’ve got the money — move it up and let’s just do it right the first time,” Lukes told reporters.

The city on Wednesday published a staff report and design for temporary lanes on a one-kilometre section between Academy Road and Stradbrook Avenue, after getting public input on a proposed $436,000 pilot project.

The surprising complexity behind the squeak of basketball shoes on hardwood floors

NEW YORK (AP) — As he watched the Boston Celtics play from the stands of TD Garden, one noise kept catching Adel Djellouli's ear.

“This squeaking sound when players are sliding on the floor is omnipresent,” he said. “It’s always there, right?”

Squeaky shoes are part of the symphony of a basketball game, when rubber soles rasp against the hardwood floors as players jab step, cut and pivot and defenders move their feet to stay in front of their assignment.

Returning home from the game, Djellouli wondered how that sound was produced. And as a materials scientist at Harvard University, he had a way to find out.

First Nations awaiting Hydro consults

With licences for two major Manitoba Hydro projects set to expire later this year, affected First Nations await consultation — and want to see change.

Licences for the Churchill River Diversion and Lake Winnipeg Regulation projects, first issued in the 1970s, expire Sept. 1 and Aug. 1, respectively.

The diversion directs water to five stations accounting for roughly 75 per cent of Manitoba’s power generation. The latter project allows Hydro to generate power by manipulating Lake Winnipeg’s water levels.

There is no timeline for the licence renewals, said Environment Minister Mike Moyes. He said that would be dependent on consultations with impacted First Nations.

AI chatbots and teens — a sometimes deadly combination

As if there weren’t enough concerns about the changes artificial intelligence may bring in the future — the displacement of millions of workers, or the potential for AI to disconnect from its human managers and go its own way — there are clear and present dangers which AI companies must be forced to address now.

Organizations join forces to make First Nation kids’ dreams a little sweeter

Nearly two dozen children in Pukatawagan will be able to sleep in their own new beds this week, thanks to the Manitoba chapter of the Knights of Columbus and Sleep in Heavenly Peace.

The Knights, an organization that helps Catholic men live out their faith through service to their parishes and the community, has partnered with Sleep in Heavenly Peace to provide 22 beds for the children.

The beds, which are being shipped in pieces, will arrive this week by truck and train, together with 500 donated coats and seven wheelchairs. The cost of all the items, along with transportation, has been covered by the Manitoba chapter of the Knights.

A group of volunteers, led by Mark Desjardins, who leads the chapter, will leave Wednesday, driving to the community located about 200 kilometres north of The Pas to assemble and install the beds.

Police warn about AI use in sophisticated scam calls

Police warned Manitobans about the rising use of artificial intelligence to clone voices for use in phone scams, while launching a campaign Tuesday to protect seniors from fraud.

The six-month “Just Hang Up” campaign will alert seniors, their children and their caregivers about grandparent or emergency scams that have become prevalent and increasingly sophisticated.

“These scams are designed to be high pressure. They prey on the ones we love the most — our grandparents, the ones we know who are going to help us in the time of need,” Winnipeg Police Service Insp. Jennifer McKinnon said at a news conference.

Manitobans aged 60 and older reported losing almost $350,000 to grandparent or emergency scams in 2024, as reported by the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre. The actual total is likely much higher because scams are vastly underreported.

Sustained scabies outbreak frustrates families of PCH residents

A months-long outbreak of scabies at a Selkirk personal care home has families upset and the local MLA urging health officials to do more to eradicate the problem.

Tudor House has confirmed it is battling an ongoing outbreak of scabies, which was first declared on Sept. 12.

Dave Ramsay says his 85-year-old father, Neil, moved into the 76-bed facility the day before the outbreak was declared. His dad, who suffers from dementia and is unable to stand or walk independently, contracted scabies several days later.

He has been in and out of isolation since, and was reinfected with the skin infestation in mid-December. His roommate has also been infected multiple times.

Belated Lunar New Year party a feast of Korean culture

For the last month, Andrea Kitano has been spending her weekends hosting hanbok fashion shows at shopping centres across Winnipeg.

Heavenly Coco Cafe owners order up Chilean, Portuguese pride

A taekwondo lesson and a chat — that’s how a new Chilean- and Portuguese-owned café was born in Winnipeg.