WestJet plans a 73,110-square-foot aircraft maintenance hangar near Winnipeg Richardson International Airport, becoming the first tenant in the AirLink Business Park at West Lands. Chief executive Alexis von Hoensbroech said the facility, expected to open by late 2028, fills a missing piece for growing the airline's Winnipeg network and could employ about 50 aircraft maintenance engineers. The Winnipeg Airports Authority will build the hangar for a planned 25-year lease, subject to approvals including Transport Canada and WestJet's board. Mayor Scott Gillingham called it a boost for the city's aviation economy after years of infrastructure spending to service the industrial lands.
Two bypass gates at Winnipeg's North End sewage treatment plant opened unexpectedly early Monday, sending about 9.8 million litres of partially treated sewage into the Red River over roughly two and a half hours. Water and waste director Tim Shanks said the gates were meant to be opened manually but had been set to automatic, and no alarm alerted staff. The city is investigating why, and the gates are now locked. Officials do not expect long-term effects on river water quality and will keep testing. The province is investigating whether enforcement is needed as the plant undergoes a $3.2-billion upgrade.
Manitoba's Child Care Coalition says the province must create at least 77,000 more child-care spaces to reach a national access benchmark of 59 per cent coverage. Manitoba currently has about 44,850 licensed spaces, covering roughly 22 per cent of its children, according to figures the coalition gathered partly through a freedom of information request. Meeting the target would require about 23,000 more infant and preschool spaces and 54,000 school-age spaces. Advocates credited recent progress, including $10-a-day care and higher wages for early childhood educators, but said many families still face long waits, especially parents working evenings, weekends or rotating shifts.
