An urban paradise of lush gardens and iconic design is a part of everyday life for downtown residents and a welcoming place for visitors
From lush floral displays to iconic design, Waterfront Drive is an urban paradise. The relaxed character and pedestrian-friendly environment of this unique downtown neighbourhood is an integral part of everyday life for its residents and a welcoming place for visitors.
The gardens are a tapestry of riches. My first visit this summer was in late June, when I joined a friend for a walk along Waterfront Drive to see the incredible show of peonies. There were still peonies in bloom on my second visit last week but oh, the roses, their arching canes heavily laden with double crimson flowers and countless buds that will put on a show for weeks to come.
Stellar specimens of Royal Purple Smokebush (Cotinus coggygria) thrive in multiple locations on Waterfront Drive, with billowy puffs of flowers starting to open. Don’t let anyone tell you that you can’t grow smoke bush in our cold climate!
The roundabout at the intersection of Waterfront Drive and Bannatyne Avenue is an impressive focal point. At its heart stands the Selkirk Settlers 1813 monument, the work of sculptor Gerald Laing. The dense array of plants in the roundabout includes tall, purple-flowered alliums, Paeonia White Wings peony, Rose Glow Japanese barberry shrubs, breathtaking roses, aquamarine blue larkspur, a sweep of brilliant orange-flowered Maltese Cross, native grasses, and bronzy sedge grasses sprinkled here and there for textural contrast.
“There’s so much to enjoy on the strip and we have some beautiful well-established perennials as well as new,” says Jennifer Roscoe, City of Winnipeg gardener. “For folks who love perennials, the Cairn of Tears Scots’ Monument in Fort Douglas Park is a great place to start, featuring delphinium, gypsophila, helenium, heliopsis, and salvia. There’s a large shady bed just south of James Avenue that’s loaded with astilbe, brunnera, hosta, lamium, pulmonaria, and tradescantia. There are a few other beds that feature great mixes of perennials, too, and among the annuals we’ve worked in some asclepias, chelone, dicentra, geranium, ligularia, phlox, and sedum.”
Two outstanding annuals that caught my eye were Dianthus barbatus Dash Crimson, a tall Sweet William with velvety red flower clusters, and Stratosphere Pink Picotee Gaura.
There are numerous tree species along Waterfront Drive, including many flowering crabapples, lindens, lilacs, and Japanese elms. There are surprises, too, such as a bed planted with edibles including dill, parsley, and strawberry plants.
Downtown gardeners and Parks staff look after the gardens and greenspace in Stephen Juba and Fort Douglas Parks from the pots on the intersection at Pioneer Boulevard and Israel Asper Way along Waterfront Drive to the roundabout near Heaton Avenue, says Roscoe.
But if I had to pick two locations which made the greatest impression on me, it would be the entrance to Waterfront Drive where an elevated rail line passes overhead and the pedestrian boardwalk bridge which is closer to the centre of Waterfront Drive. These are the spots where I became aware of the masterful design and vision of this scenic parkway with its layered landscape and iconic architectural detail.
When the Exchange District Waterfront strategy was launched by CentreVenture and the City of Winnipeg in 2000, Scatliff + Miller + Murray (SMM) was hired to create the vision for this new urban renewal project. Waterfront Drive was designed to present a positive image for Winnipeg but also to attract new development. Their ambition has surely been realized.
“When we did Waterfront Drive, it was one of the first times that a project brought in artists to contribute to the design and elements that would be in the park,” says Cheryl Oakden, principal at SMM. Jordan Van Sewell, renowned ceramic artist, created interpretive kiosk pieces that speak to the place of origin. The designs of another artist, Keith Oliver, whose work has been influenced by shapes and patterns found in nature, can be seen on the benches, lamp post bases, and the tall black steel inverted planters that flank the wood and stone steps at the end of Lombard as well as on the black steel posts of the pedestrian boardwalk bridge, all of which have a wrought iron effect and a unique pattern.
The patterning, created by laser cutting, mimics a fern leaf. The pedestrian boardwalk bridge, framed by mature trees and shrubbery, overlooks a fern-filled ravine dotted with the lacy, flat-topped flower clusters of Queen Anne’s Lace. Cyclists, couples who are strolling or walking their dogs, and mothers pushing strollers — all pause for a moment on the boardwalk to gaze at the natural beauty that is all around them before continuing on their path.
“One of the elements of that part of the design actually relates to the old Brown’s Creek which used to flow into the river at Bannatyne,” says Oakden, “so it was kind of bringing back the historic creek and strengthen the notion of bridging with some of the topography that was there.”
Interestingly, an art piece that is no longer functional was sound art that was installed at the start of the project. “Speakers under the bridge were activated with people moving across and it had sounds of the types of activities that would happen along this site as a working waterfront back in the 1800s,” says Oakden.
The ghost of the stream was also reimagined with water misters that were on a timed cycle in the roundabout. It is a fascinating backstory but while some of the earlier infrastructure may no longer be in use, the overall vision is very much intact.
There is a specific spacing of trees along the roadway, says Oakden. Pruned to perfection, each tree stands tall in the centre of mounded beds with reclaimed large pieces of limestone. “We placed the limestone in a very specific way to really emphasize the showiness of the floral display all along Waterfront Drive whether you are walking or driving, hopefully at a park pace,” says Oakden.
Lilian Tankard lives with her husband John across the bridge from Waterfront Drive. “We love the downtown and walk along Waterfront Drive all the time,” she says. “The lilacs, columbine, and irises have been gorgeous this year. I think that Waterfront Drive is spectacular and one of the nicest areas of Winnipeg.”
Tankard has been a downtown resident for nine years since selling her home in North Kildonan. But she also worked downtown for many years when she was the director of partnership and visitor experiences for Travel Manitoba until she retired in 2018. Tankard is proud of the community-mindedness that she sees in the Exchange District.
“My personal belief is that if you don’t open your eyes and look around at the beauty, you will never see it. Waterford Drive and the surrounding area is a really good combination of people doing their job and nature doing its job. This is my stomping ground.”
This summer, as you visit beautiful gardens and sites around Winnipeg, plan to visit Waterfront Drive.
For advice, ideas and tips to keep your outdoor and indoor plants growing, sign up to receive Winnipeg Gardener, a free monthly digital newsletter I write for the Winnipeg Free Press at https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/newsletter/winnipeg-gardener
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