Above: The University of Winnipeg Bookstore Left: McFeetors Hall - Great-West Life Student Residence
What also makes this model unique, Kreiner adds, is the financial benefit UWinnipeg receives from UWCRC’s work. For example, development fees on capital projects — that would normally be paid to an external agency — remain with the UWCRC, and are therefore reinvested in the university’s capital or operating budget as a third stream of revenue (supplementing operating grants and tuition fees). However, UWCRC’s value to UWinnipeg is twofold. “We have a double bottom line,” notes Kreiner. “In addition to generating revenue for the university, we also must achieve the university’s objectives with respect to sustainability, accessibility and academic excellence. So not only are we deriving a financial benefit from, for example, operating our own food service, but we are also offering students better and healthier food.”
housing for mature students who are returning to university. Beyond the downtown, UWCRC is working with a community coalition in the North End to redevelop the Merchants Hotel on Selkirk Avenue for university programs and community housing. UWCRC is also supporting business development operations with an Indigenous focus by assisting some First Nations with specific projects such as Peguis (a land acquisition plan) and Fisher River (an alternative fish processing enterprise).
“Through some projects, we not only help communities, but also support UWinnipeg faculty through research initiatives — such as our biologists in Fisher River — while creating potential field placements for students in our Master’s in Development Practice (MDP) program,” adds Kreiner. So while UWinnipeg’s successful “A World of Opportunity” capital campaign may be over, UWinnipeg’s campus renaissance – and the work of its Community Renewal Corporation – is only just beginning.
Renewing into the future The UWCRC continues to develop new capital projects. Most notably, the UNITED Health & RecPlex, already under construction, will begin to serve faculty, staff, students and Winnipeg residents — including those in the inner-city community — when it opens its doors in 2014 (visit uwinnipeg.ca/rec-plex for more details). UWCRC is also developing more family
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THE JOURNAL
The UWCRC team (L to R): Oksana Semotiuk, Chris Harwood, Ashley Budge, Jeff Palmer, Sherman Kreiner, Wayne Flamand, Sherri Pchajek, Lydia Warkentin