Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - February 18, 2025, Winnipeg, Manitoba TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2025 A4 ● WINNIPEGFREEPRESS.COM NEWS I MANITOBA A complicated problem requires a complicated solution L AST Thursday, leadership at Tataskweyak Cree Nation (TCN) took the unusual step of publish- ing a list of more than 60 residents and non-band members — who they called “people of interest” — in an effort to crack down on drugs, alcohol and violence. “We are dealing with non-band mem- bers that are coming in the community and we have our own people harbor- ing these individuals,” the statement from TCN chief Doreen Spence and council said. “If you are hiding these individuals in your home, there will be consequences.” On the band council’s social media page, six photos of individuals “found to be hiding in homes here in TCN” were specifically identified, with a promise of a reward if any tip “leads to an arrest or contraband confiscated.” It was a move that prompted lawyers and media to question the legality of releasing individual names and infor- mation. It’s true. One would be hard pressed to imagine a similar situation occur- ring elsewhere in Canada without a great deal of consequence and com- pensation. For a long time, leadership at TCN has tried everything within its legal powers to stem an escalating crisis. In 2017, government officials passed a bylaw banning alcohol. Then, to stop booze, bootlegging, and illegal drugs, check-stops were regularly established on roads into the community. In 2020, a Community Protection Bylaw was passed by TCN chief and council outlining how “persons of interest” could be identified and re- moved if needed. After that, a series of declarations of emergency were issued. On July 14, 2021, TCN chief and council issued a plea to Health Canada, indigenous Services Canada, the RCMP and the Province of Manitoba for “immediate mental wellness sup- ports and long-term solutions.” “We have reached a breaking point and our community is under crisis with alcohol and drugs contributing to it,” the TCN press release declared. Two years later, TCN was one of 11 northern Manitoba communities included in a “regional state of emer- gency” declared by Keewatin Tribal Council due to “system-wide deficien- cies in public safety, health services and infrastructure.” Since then, TCN re-declared their state of emergency on May 6. Is an emergency an emergency if those who are supposed to deal with an emergency don’t treat it as one? Last Thursday, TCN chief and coun- cil took matters into their own hands, releasing the “people of interest” list after speaking with individuals on it. According to the press release: “TCN Chief & Council spoke to a number of people to give them a final warning and explained why their names were listed, we offered support services and asked them to stop what they are doing!” An invitation was then issued. “If your name is listed below, please reach out to the Chief and Council or come to the band office… If you feel your name should not be on here, come and see us!” There’s a saying I often use: a com- plicated situation requires an compli- cated solution. Finding complicated solutions is pretty much how First Nations deal with crisis. Years ago, Indigenous parents would have to openly flout Canadian law to keep their children out of legally-man- dated residential schools. Indigenous hunters and trappers used to have to lie to authorities just to feed themselves — as free movement was illegal. Indigenous ceremonial and political organizations used to have to hide far off in the bush because of bans on Indigenous spiritualities, clothing and meetings. Today, Canadian law is still a prob- lem for First Nations. The Indian Act, for example, contin- ues to impose a draconian system of financial, political and social controls via suffocating rules, chronic under- funding and bureaucracy that leads to woeful infrastructure, subservience and poverty. First Nations governments have lit- tle to no control over their own affairs beyond poorly-enforced band council resolutions and bylaws that rely pre- dominantly on Canadian institutional recognition and enforcement. Meanwhile, very little alternative to Canadian law is available. If ceremonial lodges, traditional institutions or grassroots organizations exist, they suffer from competition, a lack of support, or the simple fact that people are fighting for their lives. On Thursday, the leadership at Tataskweyak Cree Nation took a risk. Instead of asking for help that never comes they devised a way where com- munity can share in the responsibility for the crisis and collectively come up with a solution. They offered a way to show ac- countability and responsibility and to converse with one another. Some might call this tattling. Blam- ing. Pointing fingers. Possibly. I’m going to bet though that every single person in TCN is related to, a neighbour to, or knows people on that list, so they probably knew what was happening anyways — and therefore are partly responsible for the crisis. In other words, any finger pointing comes with three fingers pointed back. On Thursday, leadership at TCN came up with an unorthodox method to deal with a crisis. A way to shed light on a dark, diffi- cult situation. A complicated solution to a compli- cated problem. niigaan.sinclair@freepress.mb.ca NIIGAAN SINCLAIR OPINION Proposed bylaw change concerns group planning to build homeless shelter A volunteer group that has spent near- ly two years working to create transi- tional housing for Steinbach’s homeless population fears opponents are pres- suring politicians to pull the rug out from under the project. Leona Doerksen, founder and board chair of The INN (Initiative for Neigh- bourly Nights Inc.) said the southeast- ern community’s council has suddenly proposed a new zoning bylaw that in- cludes a category of buildings called emergency shelters. The surprise proposal comes after the group’s purchase last year of a lot on which to build a planned $1.35-mil- lion facility, intended to help as many as 30 people at a time in 12 bedrooms at the east end of Steinbach’s Main Street. Doerksen said if the bylaw is eventu- ally approved, the group would have to apply for a conditional use permit, go through the public hearing process and councillors would vote on it before be- ginning construction. “When purchased for The Inn, the lot was zoned so that our intended use was permitted,” she said Friday. “So this is a change after the fact. If the conditions were concerns around noise, pollution, increased traffic, site line disruptions, building aesthetics, etc., we could understand the need for changing the permit status, however these are not the concerns. “It’s the image of having a shelter on Main Street that seems to be the big- gest concern.” She said the not-in-my-backyard re- sponse from some is standard in any community where “supportive-type housing” is needed. Doerksen said the property isn’t in the main area of the city’s major street for shopping and services, but at the far east end near a Mennonite Central Committee thrift shop. She said there are no nearby schools. Other properties the group looked at cost hundreds of thousands of dollars more, she said. The group, which has been approved as a registered charity by the Canada Revenue Agency, has raised $100,000 and has pledges for another $120,000 Doerksen said, adding it has asked the province to provide funding for oper- ational and staff costs, lined up a build- er and created drawings of what the facility will look like. If all of the necessary funding was already in place, construction could begin, she said. The reality is that it’s not and the proposed bylaw could be an obstacle. “Regardless of where we would build, there will always be some NIMBY pushback,” she said, adding volunteers have gone door to door in the neigh- bourhood twice to offer updates on the project’s progress. “If the city council base their de- cisions on neighbours’ fears, we will continually be denied a permit to build. This could set the project back for years. We are hopeful that (council) will do what is best in the interest of the most needy people in our community.” Doerksen estimated that there are about 60 homeless people in the com- munity. Steinbach Mayor Earl Funk denies the proposed bylaw is intended to stop the organization from building the homeless shelter. He said he’s heard from people with strong feelings on both sides of the issue. “There are a lot of supporters for it and a lot of people with questions and they’re not getting the answers at this time,” the mayor said. “We want it so there can be a public hearing so the neighbourhood can be informed… I want to be transparent. “At least the public can be heard and maybe then the public would be OK with it… I don’t want anyone to feel slighted or blindsided.” Marion Willis, executive director of St. Boniface Street Links, said her or- ganization has received some pushback in the past when setting up facilities to help the homeless, but it hasn’t had any issues since opening its year-old temporary shelter space on St. Mary’s Road. “It is surprising and disappointing to hear they could be faced with these types of worries, especially from a Christian community with a message to always help your brother,” Willis said. “Sometimes fear overrules good judg- ment. “When there is a place for people to go to, the evidence is a lot of the social issues people are concerned about go down.” Eduardo Aquino, an architecture pro- fessor at the University of Manitoba who works on housing issues for the homeless, commends the group for its efforts to address a problem in the com- munity. “This group in Steinbach is doing the right thing, because that’s the first step to resolve the homeless situation — housing first,” Aquino said. “If city officials are trying to use regulations to delay a process, they are not serving the cause. They are actual- ly obstructing the cause… housing first is the first step to ending the problem. This has been proven. “The community group in Steinbach has their hearts and mandate in the right place.” A provincial government spokesman said it is reviewing the project, adding it has support available for shelter ser- vices through the Housing Starts Here program. kevin.rollason@freepress.mb.ca KEVIN ROLLASON Centre Flavie wants property rezoned so it can build a shed to protect vehicles St. B charity reels from repeated thefts A T a Winnipeg non-profit, some thieves take what they could have got for free if only they’d registered — an irony that under- scores the organization’s challenges as it awaits re-zoning approval from the city. Centre Flavie, a charity that assists up to 150 families a day, is looking for help from the City of Winnipeg in the form of re-zoning its 301 Archi- bald Street property, freeing up the charity to build a 5,000-square foot storage shed to shield delivery vehicles from rampant thefts and vandal- ism. “I guess people think we have gold bars in there or something,” said executive director Gilbert Vielfaure. “But it’s just on and on.” In lieu of the precious metal, Centre Flavie dis- tributes clothing, furniture, household items, ap- pliances and even cars when possible — whatever they receive from donations. But thieves and vandals over the years have taken a toll on operations, taking a bite out of the resources the organization has to cover insurance deductibles and other associated costs, money that would be better used addressing the needs of cli- ents. Vielfaure, who spoke to the Free Press on Fri- day, said they’ve had at least 13 catalytic convert- ers stolen from their fleet of five delivery vehi- cles, which have also had their windows smashed out and fuel tanks drilled to swipe fuel. Just last week, Vielfaure said he had to replace several padlocks after they were clipped by ban- dits rummaging through their trucks. “Because we’re a charity that gives everything away, every time we incur damage or theft, it’s just that much more cost to us and impedes our ability to help those who really need it,” he said. The charity has had cameras set up to deter criminal activity and they’ve reported the thefts to police, who rarely come out to investigate. “I don’t blame them because there is just so much of it,” Vielfaure said. It’s not just money spent mending the damage, but the vital time lost with the trucks out of com- mission for repairs. “We have five trucks because we need them. Losing a truck affects our ability on a practical level, never mind the money,” Vielfaure said. Centre Flavie has been waiting for that re-zon- ing approval for 18 months. The good news is the Winnipeg Public Service will recommend the request at a committee meet- ing this Friday, chaired by Coun. Markus Cham- bers. From there, it will be forwarded to council for approval. With some luck, council will vote on the matter later this month. “Hopefully, the building of the storage unit will go quicker, or I might be retired,” said Vielfaure, who has been with Centre Flavie since 2005. St. Boniface Coun. Matt Allard declined to com- ment on the specifics of the ask from the charity on Sunday. “Given the upcoming public hearing for re-zon- ing and the current fiduciary and moral obliga- tions of city councillors to maintain impartiality, it’s best that all information pertaining to the ap- plication be considered during the hearing itself,” Allard said in a statement. “Any comment I might provide beforehand could potentially create prob- lems with the process if those public comments were later found to be an issue.” The Free Press also reached out to Chambers for comment. The charity currently runs out of a 13,000 sq. ft. facility, said Vielfaure, and more space is always needed. “The more space means more items we can have,” he said. “The more we have, the more we can give.” scott.billeck@freepress.mb.ca SCOTT BILLECK MIKE DEAL / FREE PRESS Gilbert Vielfaure, executive director at Centre Flavie, said they’ve had at least 13 catalytic converters stolen from their fleet of five delivery vehicles. ;