Stakeholders react to Winnipeg’s city council voting to open Portage and Main to pedestrians

'My hope is that we can find some way to save the underground, which is now strange because the debate has now shifted from above ground to below ground.'

It’s the heart of Winnipeg, and the heart of a long-running debate that now appears to be settled.

Thursday evening, Winnipeg’s city council voted “yes” to reopening the city’s iconic Portage and Main intersection to pedestrians by summer 2025 — coinciding with the city’s new transit system.

“It’s a good day. After 45 years of our signature intersection being a confusing, ugly embarrassment, I think this is good news for Winnipeg,” said Adam Dooley, who chaired the ‘Vote Open’ campaign in 2018.

That campaign pushed for Portage and Main to reopen, but a public plebiscite that year shut the idea down.

At least until now.

Jino Distasio, an urban geography professor with the University of Winnipeg said this is long overdue.

“The bustle of a city is above ground. When you see the coming and going, it adds to the vibrancy, and I think that’s always been missing here at Portage and Main,” he said.

But, Distasio also has concerns about closing the underground concourse below the intersection.