Unicity
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Unicity came into existence in the Greater Winnipeg area in 1972. It was an innovative experiment in local government reform that established the City of Winnipeg as one unified city.
The City of Winnipeg Act incorporated the R. M. of Charleswood, R. M. of Fort Garry, R. M. of North Kildonan, R. M. of Old Kildonan, Town of Tuxedo, City of East Kildonan, City of West Kildonan, City of St. Vital, City of Transcona, City of St. Boniface, City of St. James-Assiniboia, City of Winnipeg and The Metropolitan Corporation of Greater Winnipeg into one city.
Unicity replaced the two-tier metropolitan system established in 1960. The bold initiative captured the attention of cities and city reformers across Canada and North America for its unique combination of goals as well as for its key features. However, it has failed to ignite development within the downtown and inner city area of Winnipeg, which have declined markedly since Unicity government came into being. In fact, what has resulted, is the usurpation of civic government by suburban councillors solely for the benefit of the outer suburbs. Almost all growth in Winnipeg during the past 35 years has occurred either in the distant southern, northern, or eastern suburbs. Like Detroit, St. Louis, and many other North American cities, Winnipeg is increasingly suffering from a "doughnut effect", and is rapidly declining in economic importance relative to other cities in Canada and North America. What was Canada's fourth largest city at the time of Unicity, had fallen to ninth by 2005. Winnipeg's population has grown by only about 20% in the last 35 years, while that of Calgary has tripled, and those of Vancouver and Edmonton have more than doubled. Even the population growth in Regina and Saskatoon has outpaced Winnipeg's. Accordingly, it is widely viewed that Unicity was a disastrous mistake for Winnipeg, the consequences of which will be extremely difficult to reverse.
 |
This Manitoba-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
