Diversity is a Place Called Home
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By Brent Bellamy, Creative Director and Architect
Winnipeg is a city with few natural advantages. It's flat, isolated and cold. It doesn't have Vancouver's snowcapped peaks, Victoria's elegant harbourfront or Toronto's economic engine.
What Winnipeg does have is old buildings. Although many people view these aging structures as dusty relics that symbolize decay and lack of progress, a change in perspective might reveal an asset that can be leveraged as a catalyst for growth in the same way as Edmonton's river valley or Quebec's historic ramparts.
How to Fill Potholes
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By Brent Bellamy, Creative Director and Architect
The people of Winnipeg have become a tired and irritable bunch. They have endured the worst winter since the invention of the automobile and now are living through what might be the worst spring for potholes since they started making roads for those vehicles.
It's understandable then, that as city council was presented with the details of a $590-million plan to complete the city's first leg of rapid transit, the public, politicians and media all wondered aloud if the money would be better spent filling that proliferation of potholes.
WAG's Neighbour from the North
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By Brent Bellamy, Creative Director and Architect
The powerful forms of Inuit art, a dancing soapstone bear, a majestic ivory narwhal or an etching of a snowy owl, shape the symbolic imagery of Canada's northern indigenous people. The distinctive works that have come to represent this ancient culture are, surprisingly, a modern form of artistic expression.
Leadership Makes Wheels Turn
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By Brent Bellamy, Creative Director and Architect
Winnipeg played host last week to the second International Winter Cycling Congress. Nearly 200 delegates from across North America gathered to discuss the challenges of urban winter cycling and celebrate the benefits it can have for northern cities.
The health and quality-of-life-benefits cycling as urban transportation can bring to the citizens of a city are obvious. Numerous studies show commuters who cycle are generally healthier; they feel less stress, sleep better and have more energy. Physically active employees often show improved productivity, reduced absenteeism and turnover.
Embracing Density
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By Brent Bellamy, Creative Director and Architect
Water-main breaks caused by the cold tax the city’s infrastructure budget. (JOHN WOODS/ FREE PRESS FILES)
It has been a difficult time for Winnipeg's infrastructure. Our water periodically looks, but certainly doesn't taste, like a fine Canadian whisky. A combination of the polar vortex and daily water-main breaks has entombed cars from Charleswood to Transcona in knee-deep ice. Recent snow-clearing efforts left most of us wanting to trade in our car for a late-model Mars Rover, and of course in the not-too-distant future, the annual pothole invasion will begin.
Number TEN Blog
Number TEN Inspired! captures the knowledge, passion and ideas of our award winning architects, interior designers and supporting staff, as they navigate through the complexities of the modern design landscape. We are creative problem solvers, advocates for better ways of doing things, and observers of all that is interesting and noteworthy in our field. This blog is our effort to share our knowledge and ideas in a way that resonates with everyone. Whether you work in the industry as an architect, interior designer, building manager, property developer, or are just someone with an interest in creativity and new ways of doing things, this blog has something for you.
