Mayoral candidate wants review of Winnipeg's governance, but critics call it 'wasteful exercise'

Winnipeg mayoral hopeful Glen Murray says if elected, he would conduct a governance review at city hall — even though the current council adopted a final report on such a review earlier this year.

"I think there's some good things in there," Murray said Friday of the final review on the city's governance structure and processes, which was accepted by council in January.

However, "I don't think it's big enough, and I think it's too internal," he said. "I really do think that we need to listen to our citizens and listen to our community leaders." 

At a Friday news conference, Murray unveiled a 13-point plan to review a range of city governance issues. It includes ideas that were already addressed in the external governance review that was conducted from 2019 to 2021, and received by council in January.

That review included 15 recommendations, some of which Murray echoes, such as making it easier for the public and elected officials to get city information, and speeding up processes for development.

Murray's plan also includes new ideas, such as consolidating the Winnipeg Parking Authority — which he calls a "cash cow" for the city — with the downtown development agency CentreVenture.

He also wants to give that agency more power to lead redevelopment and infill projects.

New taxi board, police board review proposed

The parking authority currently oversees vehicles-for-hire staff who decide how taxis, ride-hailing vehicles and limousines can operate in the city. 

Murray said the city hasn't done a good job of regulating those services since the responsibly was passed down from the province in 2018. He wants to create an independent board that would guide how the industry is run.

The city does have a vehicles-for-hire advisory committee, which includes community members who represent drivers and passengers, and is intended to guide city staff.

"I can't find anyone who thinks it's working very well," and some of the fines that can be issued under the city's policies are "harsh," said Murray.

City staff had to take over vehicle-for-hire responsibility "under a ridiculously short period of time and basically [they were] catching a ball, a hot potato, that the provincial government didn't want to deal with," he said.

Murray brought taxi drivers to his announcement Friday to show support for the idea.

"A lot of things are imposed on us … [by the city] and there are heavy fines," said Jimmy Lekhi, a Unicity taxi driver for eight years. "They're not listening to us properly."

A citizen-led board could make him and other drivers feel heard, and would be able to make faster decisions to keep them safe, he said.

Lekhi said he and other drivers feel unsafe at night, and wish they weren't penalized for refusing rides or asking for money up front.

"The families are suffering. What we want is nobody to suffer like them," he said. "I have my family, I have my kids. I'm looking out for my colleagues and myself."

Murray also said he also wants to review the operation of the city's police board. Under current provincial legislation, the board is meant to guide the Winnipeg Police Service based on the needs of the community.

Murray said if elected on Oct. 26,  he would appoint a working group within 100 days to complete all the reviews within six months.

'Didn't do his homework': Shone

Two other mayoral candidates say Murray's plan would repeat work already done at city hall.

The already-completed review cost the city $175,000.

City staff now have until February 2023 to figure out how to implement its recommendations, many of which highlight the need for easier access to information for both councillors and citizens.

In a release, mayoral candidate Rick Shone says his opponent "didn't do his homework."

"When running for mayor, we need to look at how city hall functions … so the first thing we should be doing is looking back at past reviews we've done, and taking those recommendations and incorporating them," the business owner said in an interview.

"I think it's important to, before announcing a full governance review … look at what we've done already and not just say, 'That was a poor report, it's not worth it. We need to spend a whole bunch of money on on new things.'" 

Scott Gillingham, a current city councillor who is also running for mayor, issued a news release calling Murray's promise "a wasteful exercise." 

Earlier this week, Gillingham reannounced his commitment to revamp city council's executive policy committee, which he said would improve transparency and fairness.

"My governance announcement this week was about implementing the next steps forward, not about sending everything back to the starting line."