Winnipeg approves $3M for skywalk from new hotel to convention centre, provided province matches it

The City of Winnipeg will cover half the cost of a skywalk between the forthcoming Sutton Place Hotel and the RBC Convention Centre — provided the provincial government covers the rest of the tab.

Winnipeg approves $3M for skywalk from new hotel to convention centre, provided province matches it Hotel project conceived in 2012 now slated to be completed in 2028 The City of Winnipeg will cover half the cost of a skywalk between the forthcoming Sutton Place Hotel and the RBC Convention Centre — provided the provincial government covers the rest of the tab. City council voted unanimously on Thursday to contribute a $2-million grant and $1 million worth of future tax revenue from the hotel toward a $6 million skywalk over St. Mary Avenue, west of Carlton Street.

The skywalk will connect the convention centre with the long-delayed hotel project, which dates back to the centre's expansion in 2012. City council approved a plan that year to finance the convention centre expansion with new property and business tax revenue from the hotel. That plan fell apart in 2015, when initial developer Stuart Olson Dominion walked away from the project.

In the absence of the hotel, the city has used revenue from its accommodation taxes to cover an $8-million city debt related to the convention centre expansion. A report to city council states this debt will be paid off once the $140-million, 352-room Sutton Place Hotel is completed in 2028. This will allow new tax revenue from Sutton Place to pay for the city's portion of the skywalk, the report states.

The Sutton Place project was announced in 2016, along with other facets of True North Square. It was intended to be a two-tower project but was later scaled back to a single hotel. Developer Northland Properties, which owns the NHL's Dallas Stars, began construction on the hotel in 2018 but placed the project on hiatus during the pandemic and prioritized the construction of its airport-area Sandman hotel instead.

The report to city council describes the 4.5-star hotel as "the largest new luxury hotel built in Winnipeg in decades." The report states the hotel will generate $3 million of new provincial tax revenue every year from operations and $17 million of provincial tax revenue during construction. The city also expects the hotel to generate $340,000 of new property tax revenue and $500,000 of accommodation tax revenue every year.

The city's $3-million contribution to the skywalk requires Northland Properties to maintain and operate the new connection. It is also contingent on the province providing $3 million of its own. Premier Wab Kinew's office did not respond to a CBC News request to confirm it will cover half the cost of the skywalk construction.

While the city stated the hotel will be completed in 2028, Northland Properties declined to say when it will open.