City council OK's renaming park after family of Transcona police officer despite concerns about process

Cameron MacLean · CBC News

· Posted: May 22, 2025 8:08 PM EDT | Last Updated: 2 minutes ago

A parkland successful Transcona volition beryllium renamed successful honour of the household of a erstwhile Winnipeg constabulary officer, but the connection to bash that generated concerns from immoderate city councillors astir the process for commemorative renamings.

Council voted successful favour Thursday of changing the sanction of Kildonan Meadows Park to Lucki Family Park. 

Joseph "Joe" Lucki started moving arsenic a constabulary serviceman for what was past the City of Transcona successful 1959. He retired from the Winnipeg Police Service successful 1989. 

That aforesaid year, his girl Patricia died erstwhile she was deed by a drunk driver.

"I'm a small jittery," Joe Lucki told reporters astatine metropolis hall before Thursday's assembly vote. "It's rather an honour to beryllium much oregon little selected to person a renaming of a park."

Transcona Coun. Russ Wyatt brought guardant the motion, which helium said had wide assemblage support. His question included attached letters of enactment from the precocious Nello Altomare, who was the MLA for Transcona, arsenic good arsenic Winnipeg constabulary Chief Gene Bowers and erstwhile constabulary main Danny Smyth.

Lucki choked up erstwhile speaking astir the decease of his daughter, who worked arsenic an aboriginal puerility educator and is honoured with a memorial grant from Red River College Polytechnic.

She went overseas to bash humanitarian work, and was killed conscionable a period aft returning home, her begetter said.

"She was killed by a drunk operator adjacent to our home, conscionable a artifact away, with different person of hers, Kerri Campbell," helium said.

Report on policy coming

But respective members of assembly said they were uncomfortable with nominations for renaming coming straight from council, arsenic the metropolis is successful the process of overhauling the mandate of the Welcoming Winnipeg committee — the assemblage liable for advising the metropolis connected the naming of nationalist spaces. 

Earlier this year, a study commissioned by the mayor's bureau recovered members of the committee, which was created to summation the usage of Indigenous spot names, were frustrated and confused astir whether the enactment of the committee aligned with its halfway purpose.

A study recommending changes to the city's argumentation is expected aboriginal this year.

Mayor Scott Gillingham, on with assembly talker Coun. Devi Sharma, voted against suspending the rules to let a ballot connected Wyatt's motion, but aboriginal voted with the bulk of councillors supporting the sanction change.

"Here's a man who's served the City of Winnipeg and the radical of Transcona diligently arsenic a constabulary serviceman for decades," Gillingham said successful a quality conference.

"And truthful erstwhile we're honouring nationalist servants, radical who've done bully enactment successful our community, I deliberation we should beryllium supportive of that."

Process 'unfortunate'

St. Boniface Coun. Matt Allard said it was "unfortunate" that councillors had to sermon the merits of the information and concerns astir the process portion Lucki was seated successful the nationalist gallery, suggesting "a modicum of vetting would beryllium good."

St. Vital Coun. Brian Mayes said the ballot to o.k. the sanction alteration would pb to a "land rush" of different nominations from councillors who had been waiting for the metropolis to implicit its reappraisal of the Welcoming Winnipeg policy. Mayes, on with councillors Sherri Rollins and Cindy Gilroy, voted against the renaming.

Wyatt said helium was motivated to propulsion the information guardant owed to Lucki's age. He turns 91 successful October.

"I was told [to] hold until the [Welcoming Winnipeg] argumentation comes retired and past bring it forward, and I was told that that volition beryllium July — and we cognize that sometimes that tin go September, October, "said Wyatt.

"I didn't privation to miss different play for the precise quality of this dedication, due to the fact that of Mr. Lucki and his youth, let's enactment it that way."

Gillingham said the Welcoming Winnipeg study was initially expected successful July, but could not accidental for definite it would beryllium acceptable by then.

Downtown councillors interest astir nonaccomplishment of parking meters

Two downtown metropolis councillors besides expressed interest Thursday that a metropolis program to region each parking meters this summer, and alternatively trust chiefly connected the PayByPhone mobile app for payment, could permission immoderate radical who deficiency smartphones without a mode to wage for thoroughfare parking.

The metropolis announced connected Wednesday each parking meters would beryllium removed by Aug. 31. Gillingham said the thought has been discussed since 2018, and the alteration is needed due to the fact that Canada is phasing retired the 3G network, which the meters trust on.

But Rollins said while 80 per cent of radical wage done the app, a important number still usage different methods.

"So I truly deliberation earlier we enactment an obstacle for 1 successful 5 folks that are visiting the Exchange District oregon the downtown that we should person had a conversation," the Fort Rouge-East Fort Garry councillor told reporters astatine metropolis hallway connected Thursday.

People who privation to wage with currency volition person to acquisition prepaid booklets from 1 of 3 locations: the 311 antagonistic astatine metropolis hall, the Parking Store astatine 495 Portage Ave., oregon the Access Centre astatine 170 Goulet St. They'll be disposable arsenic of July 2, which is erstwhile the metropolis volition commencement removing meters.

Daniel McIntryre Coun. Gilroy said the metropolis needs to marque those booklets much wide available.

"There is nary program successful trying to get those into stores to administer truthful radical would person casual entree to them," she said.

The councillors besides interest the displacement to relying connected the app for payment could unfastened the doorway to dynamic pricing, charging customers much to parkland during engaged times, portion perchance offering escaped parking astatine times of debased demand.

Finance committee seat Coun. Jeff Browaty said determination are nary contiguous plans to determination successful that direction, but it could assistance escaped up much on-street parking.

"[At] immoderate aboriginal constituent years down the road, arsenic we determination even more heavy into an app-type setup, I deliberation that would beryllium an accidental to perchance look astatine changing hours, changing rates," helium said.