The elephant in the room for all future Precinct K development has to be the “Sampson Lands.”
The Sampson Lands, directly south of the existing Royalwood Phase 2, are located on the east side of the Seine River. The two river lots compromise 36.5 acres of former farmland, its topsoil already stripped and hauled away. This is the planned gateway for all of Precinct K, including Genstar’s Bonavista community, now approaching its final build-out. The eventual buyer of the Sampson Lands, according to the City of Winnipeg, is responsible for the construction of the adjacent Warde Avenue Bridge over the Seine River. At a $15,500,000 asking price for the two river lots, the combined costs of the land and bridge are not for the faint of heart. The new owner would also be expected to give up extra land for the bridge approach right-of-way. Remember that the modest 2-lane Creek Bend Road Bridge recently cost $3,5000,000 to build. The Warde Avenue Bridge regional bridge has to span a much broader river valley. While Qualico’s Smith Farm lands to its south were last valued between $180,000 to $200,000 an acre, the asking price for the Sampson Lands is an astounding $420,000 an acre for undeveloped land. The property also contains many acres of river-bottom forest that the City would require the developer to sell to them for approximately $15,000 an acre, for an immediate loss of $405,000 an acre. Again, not for the faint of heart.
It may be understandable the Qualico and its silent partners are not willing to wait for a Black Swan event such as another developer buying the Sampson Lands. While no cities like leap-frogging, leaving gaps in the urban fabric by creating developments separated from city infrastructure by undeveloped green-fields, would the City of Winnipeg look the other way in this case? Would they force the suburban commuter horde down the narrow throat of the Creek Bend community’s road and bridge in order to develop the Qualico lands in the otherwise commendable pursuit of jobs, housing and taxes?
Without the addition of the Sampson Lands, the environmental group Save Our Seine has a bat and a ball but no field to play in. Even a cursory look at a satellite map shows that the Qualico Smith Farm property has little actual frontage on the Seine River. Fortunately, most of the Qualico riverbank forest will probably be saved from development because of waterway acquisition of its lowland coulee. Qualico does not own the small adjacent river property directly on Creek Bend Road to its south, so it could not deed that oxbow valley to the City for parkland even if it wanted to.
Save Our Seine may have to wait for the development of Qualico’s Sumka Lands in Vermette to get the Seine River park that they, and SE Winnipeg residents, feel that they deserve.
To date the Bonavista community has been silent.
Bonavista’s rush hour traffic jams are already legendary. Will Bonavista continue to be silent at the April Riel Community Committee meeting when the Qualico DASZ is submitted for their approval? In only four months’ time, we will all find out.