Workers are digging up dirt at the Manitoba Legislative Building — literally.
On the surface, for months, the east side of the lawn facing Broadway has been fenced off, with heavy equipment working away.
Below the surface, a massive effort is ongoing to upgrade some of Manitoba’s oldest subterranean infrastructure — a more-than-100-year-old tunnel — to extend its life for another 100 years.
The two-metres high by 2.5-m wide service tunnel provides utilities (such as steam heat, power and IT connections) to the legislative building that officially opened July 15, 1920.
MIKE DEAL / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS
A massive effort is ongoing to upgrade some of Manitoba’s oldest subterranean infrastructure — a more-than-100-year-old tunnel — to extend its life for another 100 years.”/>
MIKE DEAL / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS
A massive effort is ongoing to upgrade some of Manitoba’s oldest subterranean infrastructure — a more-than-100-year-old tunnel — to extend its life for another 100 years.
The power house across the street is the central heating and cooling plant that generates and distributes utilities to a number of nearby government buildings.
Passersby on Memorial Boulevard in recent weeks may have noticed huge, loud blasts of steam shooting from an exhaust pipe at the power house, where one of the older boilers was being replaced, a government spokesperson said. As part of the commissioning process, the boiler was fired to full load with excess steam vented outside, creating a visible plume and significant noise.
After more than a century of use, ceiling leaks had cracked into the tunnel. Work began in 2020 to add a concrete jacket to its exterior, along with a waterproofing membrane and enhanced drainage along its entire length, the project request for proposal stated. It’s expected to be completed in November.
The service tunnel was built in two phases from 1915 to 1916. A 1918 Department of Public Works annual report praised the power house, which served nearby University of Manitoba buildings downtown, the provincial jail, law courts building, land titles office and “new parliament buildings.”
“Anyone who has not inspected this installation and seen it in operation cannot appreciate the magnitude of it,” the report boasted. “The power house and tunnels are kept in excellent order and bear silent testimony to the efficiency of the chief operating engineer and his staff.”
Carol Sanders
Legislative reporter
After 20 years of reporting on the growing diversity of people calling Manitoba home, Carol moved to the legislature bureau in early 2020.
Read full biography
