Blah, Blah, Blahg

But sometimes it's nice to get your house's picture in the paper.
The one in the forground was last pictured in the press because of a shooting and fire.
Part of the reason our neighborhood population is growing is because of the excellent new next door neighbors we have, who are doing a fine job of rehabing a once badly neglected house.
A little good news perks up my day.







From the Winnipeg Free Press today...

"THE Spence neighbourhood, once the symbol of Winnipeg's urban decay, is a census success story.

The neighbourhood's population has grown by a 12 per cent since 2001. That makes it the only Winnipeg neighbourhood not on the far-flung fringes to grow more than 10 per cent. On Statistic Canada's census maps released yesterday, it's a little oasis in a city where most neighbourhoods are growing slowly, if at all.

'When we were talking about where to move or where to build, we decided we wanted to be able to have an impact on a neighbourhood,' said teacher Owen Bradshaw, who moved with his wife Carolyn Minor to Spence Street last summer.

They love it that so much is within walking distance -- ethnic food on Sargent Avenue, the Millennium Library, downtown theatres and the King's Head pub. And they appreciate the diversity.

'We've got neighbours from Africa, Vietnam, Portugal, some who have been here for a long time and some who are new arrivals,' Bradshaw said.

New immigrants, as well as students at the University of Manitoba, could account for the influx of people, nearly 500 over the last five years, said Statistics Canada's Milana Karaganis. Immigration is driving Manitoba's population growth, and many new Canadians set up house first in the city's core."
Maggie Friesen, president of the Spence Neighbourhood Association and long-time resident of the neighbourhood, said she was a little surprised to hear the good news buried in the 2006 census.

"We have so many buildings still empty, especially some of the apartment blocks. That's the last frontier for us," she said.

But she said the area, thanks to an uncommonly active residents' association and a series of government housing programs, has made a significant improvement over the last several years. There are few boarded-up homes and vacant lots left in the area, and the population has become much more stable.

maryagnes.welch@freepre.mb.ca

Photo: Mike Deal