Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - January 10, 2009, Winnipeg, Manitoba C m y k Page b1 1 877 958 7333 wow. Outlook financial. Com 4 .60 % 5 year Gic executive & professional search Call 944 7150 or toll free 1 866 950 1691 wow. . Ca watch you Mailbox for a full brochure a guaranteed millionaire will it be you City & business City editor Paul Samyn 697 7292 City. Desk free press. . Ca i Winnipeg repress. Com saturday january 10, 2009 b 1 Send news tips and photos to tips free press. . Ca for breaking news go to Winnipeg repress. Com g it ready for a new Era in Snow Clearing that will let you know when the City plow is coming Down your Street. A new game plan thatus in the works is designed to plow away the frustration and even the parking tickets linked to each round of Snow Clearing. No longer would residents in one end of the City scramble to pull their cars off the Road Only to discover the next Day that Snow Clearing Crews had been working in other neighbourhoods. And no longer might $ 100 parking tickets be issued As they were this week in areas away from Sno plow paths. A new web based program would pinpoint the streets where Snow Clearing would take place on a Given Day or night in order to address Peoples disenchantment with sweeping overnight parking bans. City officials gave the free press a sneak peek at the system that still needs Council approval in the Wake of Public confusion about the massive Clearing of residential streets this week. We want to try to Correct those things Bruce Mcphail manager of streets maintenance said. By next Winter Winni Eggers should be Able to go to the Cit yes website look at a map Type in their address and learn if Snow lows Are expected to Clear their Street in the next 24 hours. Bans prohibiting parking would be in effect Only for targeted streets rather than across the City. The new system would not Only show people the intended path of Snow lows but also identify the nearest streets where parking would be allowed. City officials gave the new system a test run this week. We gained some Good information on using it this past plow Mcphail said. Should we have another plow this Winter we can look for next Winter for actually putting a web based map out. Down the Road Mcphail said the City could even incorporate a phone in system for the Benefit of people without Home computers. The City issued a residential Street overnight parking ban last sunday As it prepared to Clear streets for the first time this Winter. But mayor Sam Katz ordered the cancellation of 852 tickets issued in connection with the ban after he determined the City did not give people enough time to move their vehicles. I myself had Given up any Hope of seeing a Sno plow even drive past our Street this year said Whyte Ridge resident Don Bissett who received a parking ticket the first night of the ban. Hence my complacency about Ever having to think about considering moving my car off a non Snow route residential Street. Others complained that lifting the ban during the Day led to inefficient Snow Clearing. The City now has an All out parking ban so that the plows can do a real Good Job of cleaning the streets West Kildonan resident ion Parrish said. But what do you see at 10 a. M.? the Snow lows doing residential streets and going around the parked cars leaving a huge Windrow and nine inches of hard packed Snow on the Street. Why cant the City plow one Side of the Street during the Day and the parking Side of the Street at night Mcphail said the City has studied such practices but the web based system was considered Superior. Joe. Paraskevas free press. . Ca Stop the parking ban insanity f rank Penner a snot about to let dangerous wind chills keep him from getting his daily exercise and being one of the first people to Christen what will soon be again the longest skating rink in the world. The 75 year old joined his wife of 52 years Elfrida and their daughter local musician sister Dorothy in heading out on 4.5 Kilometres of nearly Glass like ice on the Assiniboine River. Ism going to enjoy myself be part of history Penner said while lacing up his skates in a Small Shack at the Forks. The weather does not matter. If you Start from a warm car and go Back to a warm car nothing much can go wrong. Paul Jordan chief operating officer at the Forks said the nearly four metre wide Trail is polished All the Way to Hugo Street. Over the next two weeks Crews will work Day and night to extend it to Assiniboine Park a distance of 9.34 Kilometres Topping last years record breaking distance of 8.54 Kilometres. A year ago guinness world records recognized Winnipeg Gas River Trail As the worlds longest skating rink beating out the 7.8 Kilometre Rideau canal in Ottawa. The rink making process started in december with a team of students who shovelled the entire distance by hand. Next time you re shovelling out your driveway think about these people shovelling nine Kilometres of Trail Jordan said. The Trail is then flooded with a thin Sheet of water and once thatus Frozen a Zamboni polishes it. Jordan said this years version which is sponsored by Assiniboine credit Union is different from last years Trail because its entirely on the Assiniboine River. The red River be used this year because of frazil ice which is ice that freezes and then drops making it impossible for skating. Each year the Trail will be a Little bit different. Ottawa has its Static canal but we have to Deal with a real River he said. Jordan bristled at comparisons Between the two skating trails. Ottawa has got a very Cool thing going on. Were not intending to copy that. The Rideau canal is very mall like while ours is much More natural. Were trying to accentuate those features especially when you get to Wellington Crescent and its like you re skating in the Middle of nowhere he said. Josee Vaillancourt executive director of the festival do Voyageur which started the River Trail 20 years ago said it will provide family Friendly programming such As ice carving and ice painting on the River Trail near the Forks on Friday evenings and weekend afternoons. Its Winter and its cold but we can have some fun. Were very excited about the new record she said. Jordan said he was Happy to see Home depot lend a hand by building five shacks that will be placed along the Trail for people to put on their skates or take a breather. Nine Kilometres is a Long Way especially if you have to go Back to get your stuff he said. Geoff. Kirbyson free press. . Ca reporter laces them up b2 hit the Trail this years River Trail in addition to being slightly longer than last years has a few new features As Well. Home. Depot has donated five warming Sheds which will be situated along the Trail. There will be new Access Points at the Bourk Evale Community club Assiniboine Park Dominion Street and Arlington Street. Two websites River Trail. Ca eng. L ish and Sentie Rhiver. Ca French will be donated to the River Trail and provide daily updates on ice conditions. Programming includes a candlelight skate Jan. 16 with a fire dancing performance from local troupe fire pixies and an Arctic dig featuring toys and other treats encased in ice blocks along the River Trail on saturdays and sundays. Ice carving tools will be provided leisurely skate would be great Forks unveils longest natural ice Trail by Geoff Kirbyson streamlined Snow Clearing would Cut number of tickets by Joe Paraskevas Wayne Glowacki / Winnipeg free press parking ban notification would be improved. Mike Deal / Winnipeg free press Allan Morin Assiniboine credit Union ceo drives a Zamboni through ribbon at the Forks to open the worlds longest natural skating Trail. Mike Deal / Winnipeg free press Frank Penner 75, went for a Glide on the Trail the same Day it opened. B _ 01_ Jan 10 09. Ind b1 1 / 9/ 09 9 12 32 pm ;