Please see the following update from the City of Winnipeg’s Director of Planning, Property & Development:

More Development Permit Exemptions: March 2
 

As the City of WInnipeg continue to streamline processes to support building and development in Winnipeg, we are launching more development permit exemptions on March 2. 

We implemented the first phase of these changes in March of 2024, which included 25 development permit exemptions. This reduced year-over-year volumes by more than 30%. 

The second phase was launched in September of 2025 and included 11 exemptions. Early results show a 30% reduction in volumes when comparing September to December 2025 volumes against the same period in 2024. 

Based on trends over the past two years, the latest round of development permit exemptions may contribute to a further reduction in annual volumes. We could potentially achieve up to a 20% reduction relative to 2025 levels. 

The five new development permit exemptions being launched on March 2 are: 

• Change of use to establish an office in an existing commercial building anywhere in the city 
• Change of use to establish a personal services use or a retail sales use in an existing commercial building outside of the downtown area 
• Change of use to re-establish agricultural cultivation (farming) 
• Replacement of an existing fire escape 
• Like-for-like replacement of balconies 

This brings our total to 41 development permit exemptions introduced over the last two years. These exemptions benefit the development industry by allowing qualifying projects to move directly to the building permit stage. 

The latest round of exemptions will be live on our website on March 2. See the full list of development permit exemptions here. 

More Development & Building Permit Statistics: March 12 


Launched in September 2025, this web page is a valuable tool for the construction industry. Using Open Data, it displays the number of permits issued, and net changes in dwelling units. The data is categorized by project type and community. The website includes charts and graphs highlighting year-over-year residential and commercial building permit volumes from 2010 to present. On March 12, we’ll be adding development permit statistics to the web page. 

This bulletin clarifies the correct method for measuring limiting distance under the Manitoba Building Code, as it relates to exposing building faces and compliance with spatial separation and fire protection requirements.

CLICK HERE to read the full bulletin.

The City of Brandon housing team would like to remind all housing developers (for profit and not-for-profit) that the Province of MB has a Rental Housing Construction Incentive (RHCI) program to help fund the construction of rental housing.

You can claim a tax credit up to $8500 per rental unit (up to 8% of capital costs) plus an additional $5000 per affordable unit. You must apply for a Certificate of Eligibility within 90 days of receiving your building permit so do not delay!

All the details on eligible projects and program criteria can be found here: Rental Housing Construction Incentive application guide in PDF format.

To determine which provincial housing programs you are eligible for, please do the self-evaluation here: Self-Assessment Tool | Housing, Addictions and Homelessness | Province of Manitoba.

The City of Brandon Engineering Department has released a draft form of Municipal Servicing Standards (MSS) to inform municipal engineering design throughout 2026. The MSS documents can now be found on the City website at https://www.brandon.ca/news/posts/municipal-servicing-standards/.

We encourage industry to become familiar with the MSS documents and share the MSS with their consultants in order to utilize and provide feedback on the standards prior to formal adoption. Formal adoption of MSS is anticipated in the first quarter of 2027. It should be noted Section 2: Engineering Submission Standards is still being drafted and is not yet available for use or comment.

Municipal servicing standards are municipal engineering design standards that will be the basis of design for both City of Brandon projects and private development projects within the City. Our expectation is that development shall be designed in accordance with the draft document throughout 2026 prior to becoming a requirement once adopted.

Winnipeg’s City Council held a public hearing on proposed amendments to its Malls and Corridors Planned Development Overlay (PDO) of the City of Winnipeg Zoning By-law No. 200/2006 on January 21, 2026. The Public Hearing was held before all of Council and considered 3 amendments to the PDO. The proposed amendments included:

• Removing the 14-foot minimum ground floor height requirement for non-residential uses;
• Eliminating bird-friendly window design provisions; and
• Revising building height regulations tied to the 45-degree angular plane.

UDI presented in support of the proposed amendments. At the hearing, Council ultimately amended the PDO by:

• Removing the 14-foot minimum ground floor height requirement as originally proposed;
• Simplifying, but not removing, the bird-friendly window design provisions; and
• Revising building heigh regulations tied to the 45-degree angular plane while also introducing a requirement for plan approval by the Director of Planning, Property and Development and the relevant Community Committee prior to the issuance of any building or development permit.

Information on the PDO amendments approved by Council can be found here. The amended By-law will now be forwarded to Council for First Reading and an upcoming Council meeting.

Background:

UDI’s Infill Committee was asked to provide feedback to the City of Winnipeg’s administration on the proposed amendments in October 2025. Our recommendations were that all 3 requirements be eliminated from the PDO. In advance of the originally scheduled hearing in December 2025, our recommendations were shared with all members of Council. Following the decision by Council to reschedule the hearing to January 21, 2026, UDI developed and drafted wording for the bird-friendly window design provisions that would provide greater flexibility to proponents while still achieving the City’s objective on bird protection. Our proposed wording was accepted and adopted by Council. Our recommendation to remove the 14-foot minimum ground floor height requirement was also approved by Council. While our recommendation to eliminate the 45-degree angular plane height restrictions were not supported by Council, the changes approved should be more workable than the original requirements in the PDO. However, the rationale for Council’s decision to revert back to Community Committee plan approval for applications that are already in compliance with this specific requirement is troubling and has not yet been explained.

The Government of Manitoba recently confirmed it will prohibit the use of sick notes for most minor illnesses, with legislation anticipated in spring 2026. Consensus recommendations from labour and employer representatives are anticipated to shape the new rules with what are expected to be the clearest and strongest rules in Canada. 

Doctors Manitoba launched a new toolkit and webinars to help workplaces transition away from sick notes, and the Government of Manitoba announced further details on their plans to eliminate sick notes. Read more here: Doctors Manitoba to Support Employers as Manitoba Phases Out Sick Notes.

New Employer Toolkit

To support this transition, Doctors Manitoba has collaborated with HR professionals to launch a free toolkit with templates and guidance for managing absences without sick notes, including:

• Sick Leave Policy Template
• Self-Attestation Form
• Absence Management Flow Chart
• Communication and Wellness Resources

Access the toolkit at DoctorsNotes.ca/toolkit. Webinars will follow in partnership with CPHR Manitoba, Manitoba Chambers of Commerce, and CFIB 

Effective January 1, 2026, all drawings for prefabricated roof truss and engineered floor systems and associated layouts must be stamped by a professional engineer registered in Manitoba. This requirement aligns with the March 24, 2025 Province of Manitoba, Inspection and Technical Services bulletin ITS 25-003, Engineered roof truss and floor joists in Part 9 buildings under the Manitoba Building Code.

Learn more HERE.

The Manitoba government is introducing stronger rules to protect workers from asbestos, a known cancer-causing material and the leading cause of occupational death in the province, Labour and Immigration Minister Malaya Marcelino announced December 4, 2025.

Asbestos is commonly found in older building materials and becomes hazardous when it is disturbed and released into the air. Manitoba’s current regulations set basic requirements for training, inventories and safety measures.

Read the full news release HERE.

Phase 1 Engagement Complete; Review Continues

Phase 1 Engagement of the 2025 Municipal Heritage Incentive Program Review Project is complete. The Phase 1 Engagement Report is available here.



The City is still reviewing both the existing program and what other Canadian municipalities are doing to help the City consider changes to the program. We intend to share options on changes to the program later this year before formally recommending changes to City Council. 

Winnipeg Construction Association has developed a Manitoba Prompt Payment Contractor Quick Reference Guide to help contractors make sense of the new prompt payment regime. The document outlines payment timelines, rules on disputes and more. You can download it for free here.

Manitoba Municipal Board public hearing notices can be found here.