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Jan 20, 2025

Reflecting on the past and looking ahead: Qualico Communities Winnipeg continues progress in Sage Creek community

Winnipeg, MB – With the tenth and final phase of development now underway, Sage Creek continues to stand out as one of Winnipeg’s most popular community developments thanks to its focus on livability, wellbeing, and modern amenities.     

Twenty years since breaking ground on the southeast edge of Winnipeg, Sage Creek continues to evolve into a complete community filled with a mix of thoughtfully planned residential, commercial, and recreational components that allow residents to live, work, and play without having to leave the neighbourhood. This rare blend of features helps Sage Creek stand out from other communities being developed in the city.

The community’s desirability is expected to contribute to sustained growth into the future, according to Bryan Ward, Vice-President, Qualico Communities Winnipeg.

“Qualico has always demonstrated a commitment to developing well-planned communities. We don’t simply look at immediate success, but also how it contributes to the long-term wellbeing of residents into the future,” said Bryan.

Rich in amenities and attractions

Sage Creek’s first phase influenced much of what has happened in the later phases. With a wide variety of housing types and styles, Qualico Communities focused on comfort, convenience, and providing options for different lifestyles.

Later phases added multi-family buildings like the first apartment-style condos by StreetSide Winnipeg, along with an assisted-living facility, and housing that appeals to the 55+ demographic.

The community is also incredibly walkable and designed to encourage residents to engage in outdoor recreation, with pedestrian-friendly streets and over nine kilometres of trails intertwined with panoramic wetlands for walking, cycling, or skiing.

Eric Vogan, former Vice-President, Qualico Communities Winnipeg, was heavily involved in Sage Creek’s development. He said the outdoor amenities allow residents and visitors to really appreciate the neighbourhood.

“It's just a feeling you get walking the trails, with the birds flying out of the tall grass and seeing a blackbird sitting on the bull rushes. Or riding a bike through it, you can just feel how harmonious and livable Sage Creek has become,” Eric said.

Cyclists now have another opportunity to enjoy being outdoors in Sage Creek thanks to a new pump track that opened in 2024. The Capasso Pump Track is just one result of an ongoing successful collaboration and relationship between Qualico Communities and the Sage Creek Residents’ Association, which has also produced many great events and amenities for the community.


The Capasso Pump Track in Sage Creek opened on July 31, 2024

Qualico Communities and the Sage Creek Residents’ Association also worked together on creating a centrally located cell tower site in Sage Creek, which not only helps improve the quality of life for residents, but also provides an additional revenue stream for the community group.

The focus on residential density allows Sage Creek to offer amenities and services that support local needs, which in-turn encourages businesses like restaurants, cafes and stores to set up and do business here.

Unique community features include a 55-acre hydro corridor with native plants and limestone trails running through (last portion to be completed in 2025), and a string of wetlands that are home to an abundance of wildlife.

Sage Creek also features pedestrian friendly streets and public art throughout, creating a distinct sense of place.

Bryan described how important it is to create the conditions for novel ideas take shape and ultimately improve people’s lives.

 “At Qualico, we’re known for trying new things and being innovative,” said Bryan.  “In Sage Creek, this is exemplified by elements such as naturalized wetlands that has now become the standard for development. These innovations help us build better cities that are more financially and environmentally sustainable.”

Working with what you got

The hydro corridor through the middle of what is now Sage Creek existed long before the neighbourhood took shape. Qualico’s team worked with many stakeholders including the City of Winnipeg, Manitoba Hydro, and the neighbourhood to ensure the community enjoyed the positive aspects of its existence. Although it is very difficult to find a definitive answer to the impact of the pre-existing transmission line, the benefits of the open space were maximized to its highest potential.

“We highlighted the fact that the hydro corridor was an amenity, since there would be no backyard neighbour,” said Eric. “With the native grasses and trails, it’s a nice open space that people can enjoy and use for getting around the neighbourhood. They have tracked it for skiing in the winter and with some of the grading creating little hills, they are fun trails to use.”

The community’s naturalized wetlands were a major shift from the traditional manicured lakes seen elsewhere in Winnipeg, resulting from a collaboration with Native Plant Solutions – a consulting arm of Ducks Unlimited Canada.

“We were rethinking the whole stormwater management system,” Eric said. “We added huge amounts of native grasslands in upland areas that had never been done before. Even 10 years later, Ducks Unlimited Canada was bringing in busloads of engineers, planners and politicians from other parts of the country to show what had been accomplished.”

“We were also very pleased to find such a broad level of cooperation among all the stakeholders in establishing educational infrastructure. Today, Sage Creek is home to the K-8 Ecole Sage Creek School, as well as two new schools now under construction,” Eric added.

To provide students with a sense of awareness of community features, Qualico Communities has also organized immersive education opportunities with Ecole Sage Creek students to learn about its natural wetlands and stormwater management features.

The early days

The history of the Sage Creek site dates back to the 1970s, when Qualico bought a 25% share of the land known as Silver Acres. Over the decades, Qualico continued to acquire land as other interests and acreages became available right up until 2017. Meanwhile, the concept remained consistent. 

Following the creation of an area structure plan, Qualico then put together an impressive team to turn its vision into reality.

Bryan added that Sage Creek is a prime example of how Qualico and Qualico Communities Winnipeg make intentional decisions about land use, the support the Qualico’s leadership gives, and faith they had to follow through with the vision.

“There were many opportunities for Qualico to quickly profit from Sage Creek, whether from selling the land or being hasty with who gets to develop on it,” he said. “Instead, Qualico stuck to its vision and not only kept the land, but made sure that everything developed on it was with the right intentions to create the best possible community with purposeful design.”

Looking ahead

Looking to the future, the team remains steadfast in its vision to create a harmonious, walkable neighbourhood focused on livability, says Lyne Jones, Senior Development Manager, Qualico Communities Winnipeg.

“It’s easy for the vision to get lost when trying to move forward,” said Lyne. “That’s why it’s very important for us to keep coming back to the vision all the time, because that vision is what makes Sage Creek such a desirable neighbourhood.”

Since development began in 2005, Sage Creek continues to be a point of pride shared by those currently working on it and those who were involved in its inception and early phases, including Eric.

“I think the really cool thing is that through a strong vision, favourable market conditions, and our best practical efforts, Sage Creek has turned out to be everything we could have hoped to create,” he said.

“It gives us great satisfaction to witness the evolution of a community that takes great pride in where they live, work and play.”

 

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