Charleswood, City but not a city

FTLComm - Winnipeg - Saturday, July 6, 2002

On the West side of Winnipeg South of Portage Avenue is a district that at one time must have been a town or village that was absorbed by the city of Winnipeg. As a very young child I remember a trip to Winnipeg with my parents by train then riding a city bus to the end of the line then walking down a dusting hot country road which for me was a very long way and as always when on long walks I do remember complaining. We were going to see a friend of my parents and the friend lived in Charleswood. Today Charleswood is a remarkable grid of narrow streets that have deep ditches on each side and seems to be a

full fledged forest. Huge lots for each home are separated in their back yards by enormous expanses of treed areas, some of these spaces are owned by the lot owners others are empty public property. All in all it makes for an area with a remarkably low population density so that people stroll and bike along the quiet streets through what looks more like a resort community than an urban neighbourhood. The picture above show that the street just ends in farm fields. People who live in the area complain of the mosquitoes. One lady explained to me that the city had planned to develop the voids between the streets into crescents but this plan was thwarted by owners holding some of the property and being

unwilling to sell and thus allow the development. Above is an exceptional driveway shared by two homes and below the sweeping driveway demonstrates the large lots in the area. Below is a little further South where there have been some crescents developed and in this case a dead end street ends in bush. A remarkable part of a city, almost rural in its nature with a mix of expensive and modest homes.