Winnipegger wants to rename, brighten up alley used by people experiencing homelessness
Al Wiebe has been advocating for the honorary street name change for 2 years
Al Wiebe gave the name "Hope Alley" to an alleyway he passed through countless times to get to different shelters and resource centres when he was homeless.
Now Wiebe's name for the stretch of Henry Avenue between Main Street and King Street in downtown Winnipeg could be made official, if the city approves it.
"When I lost my hope when I was out there, I jumped off a bridge to take my life. Hope is the one thing that carries people. It sustains them and carries them to a better place," Wiebe said.
In 2010, Wiebe lost his job working in advertising and spent the following winter living in a broken-down car in a junkyard.
He says if a person like him, who was making $150,000 a year, can end up homeless, anyone can.
"I always say when you see that person on Main Street, remember me."
Wiebe now works with different groups that help people experiencing homelessness.
He knows how busy the alleyway is with people who are traveling on foot between resources like the Salvation Army on Main Street and Siloam Mission on Princess Street.
And he wants a sign with the words "Hope Alley" to offer support to anyone passing through.
"It's really, really important for that word to be visible and always there … [so] there's something to look forward to," Wiebe said.
A few weeks ago, Wiebe helped get new benches for the alley. They're painted blue, with phrases like "love is peace" and "be strong" engraved in English, Cree and Anishinaabemowin.
The benches and the proposed sign are part of his bigger plan to brighten up the alley. Next, he plans to have murals painted by Indigenous artists.
"It's not a big thing, but it's something. When you're homeless, it's always a cloudy day."
Every year, Wiebe holds a sunrise memorial service to remember people who died while homeless, which Main Street Project contributes to by providing a meal.
A number of organizations have written to the city in support of the sign and honorary street renaming proposal, which was originally presented to city council in 2020.
Point Douglas city councillor Vivian Santos has written in support too, and says she'll cover any costs involved with installing the sign.
Christina Maes Nino, a homelessness advocate, thinks the approval process reflects how slow policy makers are when it comes to addressing homelessness.
"Addressing homelessness has been painfully slow. And the fact that it takes two years for just a sign to say this is Hope Alley, is an indication of our progress on homelessness. To be perfectly blunt, we're building housing, affordable housing, at a pace that's slower than the pace that we're losing it," Maes Nino said.
The Lord Selkirk-West Kildonan Community Committee will consider the renaming and sign installation on Thursday.
WATCH | Turning "Hope Alley" into a place that inspires:
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With files from Sam Samson