True North, the Southern Chiefs’ Organization and Manitoba government plan to develop multi-family residential and healthcare towers as part of the proposed Portage Place mall redevelopment in downtown Winnipeg.

True North, the SCO and province announced their plans at a recent news conference in the Manitoba capital. Winnipeg-based True North is slated to construct both projects in partnership with the SCO and province after the company completes its proposed purchase of Portage Place from Vancouver-based Peterson Group this summer.

The 15-storey apartment tower is slated to include affordable and accessible housing units. The 12-story healthcare centre is designed to provide a primary-care clinic, mental health and addictions support services, and additional renal dialysis capacity, as well as an expansion of private Pan Am Clinic.

The province and True North have signed a letter of it intent on a 35-year lease agreement for the healthcare centre pending completion of the mall acquisition.

Construction on the redevelopment is scheduled to begin in 2025.

The plans come after Winnipeg-based True North and SCO signed a memorandum of understanding in December to collaborate on the Portage Place and Wehwehneh Bahgahkinahgohn redevelopment projects.

The latter project involves the redevelopment of an adjacent former Hudson’s Bay Company department store into a mixed-use property. Wehwehneh Bahgahkinahgohn is now owned by SCO, which represents 34 First Nations located in Southern Manitoba.

Jim Ludlow, president of True North’s real estate arm, announced that the company will sell an existing walkway between Portage Place and the former HBC store to SCO for a nominal $1 price.

Together the Portage Place and Wehwehneh Bahgahkinahgohn projects encompass about two million square feet. Ludlow said in December that the redevelopments have a total projected cost of $850 million.

Rendering: Architecture49/True North Real Estate Development