Parker Lands Battle Heads to Supreme Court, Exposes Deeper City Hall Failures

This week, the long-standing battle over the Parker Lands took a significant turn as the developer behind the stalled Fulton Grove project submitted a 242-page appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada. The appeal contends that Winnipeg city planners were “acting deliberately and unlawfully in an effort to slow down or thwart the Plaintiffs’ development with disregard for the harm their actions were causing the Plaintiffs.”

That’s a serious claim. And whatever the court ultimately decides, the fact that this case has reached the country’s highest court should tell us something: we have a real problem with how the City of Winnipeg handles planning and development. This isn’t just about one developer or one project. It’s about a broken system that delays progress, drives up costs, and discourages investment in a city that claims it wants growth.

Let’s talk about what’s actually at stake here. The Parker Lands is a 19-hectare property along the rapid transit corridor in south Winnipeg. It’s exactly the kind of site that city planners, housing advocates, and politicians say we need to build on—close to public transportation, large enough for thousands of homes, and fully in line with the city’s stated goals of increased density and transit-oriented development.

The developer, Andrew Marquess of Gem Equities, proposed a multi-family community called Fulton Grove back over a decade ago. In 2023, a Manitoba judge ruled that two senior city planners had intentionally delayed the project and ordered the city to pay $5 million in damages. But that ruling was overturned earlier this year by the Court of Appeal, which found that while the conduct of city officials may have raised eyebrows, it did not meet the threshold for misfeasance in public office. The appeal to the Supreme Court now seeks to reverse that decision.

Regardless of the outcome, this entire episode reveals a deeper problem that extends far beyond the courts. If Winnipeg is serious about addressing its housing needs, then we need to take a hard look at the internal processes that govern how and when developments are approved—or blocked.

The city’s current approach sends a chilling message to homebuilders and businesses. You can spend years planning a project, meet all the supposed requirements, own the land, and still find yourself stuck in red tape, political games, or worse. Meanwhile, the land sits empty, while politicians hold press conferences about the need for more homes.

If this sounds like a contradiction, it is. City Hall recently pushed through sweeping changes to allow fourplexes and triplexes in established neighbourhoods. Their justification? Winnipeg is in a housing crisis, and we need more density. Yet while the city fights for the right to increase housing in built-up areas—often over the objections of long-time residents—it has allowed the Parker Lands to sit undeveloped for over a decade. This land could eventually support up to 6,000 new homes. But rather than support the project, the city has spent years fighting it.

Why is it easier to force fourplexes into quiet residential streets than to approve a large, transit-friendly development that meets all the supposed planning goals? Why is council quick to change zoning rules but slow to act when real opportunity knocks?

The only consistent pattern here is inconsistency. The development process in Winnipeg is unpredictable, confusing, and sometimes hostile. Planners and departments operate without clear direction. Political interference clouds judgment. And instead of taking ownership of delays, the city too often ends up in court.

This has to change. Streamlining the development process should be a top priority—not just in speeches but in practice. That means setting firm timelines, ensuring transparency in decision-making, and removing the kinds of backroom delays that stall projects and waste years. It also means political leaders need to lead. That includes the mayor and council, who must start focusing less on press-friendly gestures and more on fixing the core systems that affect real housing supply.

It’s easy to talk about a housing crisis. It’s harder to fix the systems that cause it. But this is where the work needs to happen. The Parker Lands case is no longer just a legal battle. It’s a public example of what’s wrong with how Winnipeg governs growth. And if we’re going to move forward as a city, we need to learn from it.

If City Hall is serious about addressing Winnipeg’s housing needs, it should start by restoring credibility to its own planning process. The Parker Lands case has exposed systemic delays, a lack of transparency, and inconsistent decision-making that undermine both public trust and private investment. Until we confront those problems directly, no amount of policy change or zoning reform will deliver the results this city needs. The real housing crisis isn’t just about supply—it’s about the structure and leadership guiding how we build. That’s where the fix has to begin.