GCJenks

Mark H. you are one fine educator. Thank you for your service. I mean that.

1. The primary function of any museum is to preserve heritage and educate the public. Expecting a high degree of economic impact through tourism, is a recent shift and actually a fairly new idea.  
2. You pointed out government subsidy as if it were a negative. It's the norm for any museum - they all get subsidies.  That's why I could rent two rooms at the MB. museum this past Friday, and also have my students complete a scavenger hunt of the galleries, all for $13 per student, plus 5 free chaperones. We were at the museum from 9:30 - 3:00; per hour, per student, that's ridiculously low, and I greatly appreciate it. 

Have you ever been down Hastings/East Hastings in Vancouver/Burnaby? Makes our downtown look like the Garden of Eden and it's cleaned up from what it was 10 years ago. I do business with 3 locations along that strip and it is not uncommon for the metal roller shutters to stay closed all day while people work inside and the rear parking areas are 10ft fences with barbed wire on top.
Winnipeg is in no way the worst downtown in the country and is not what keeps people from coming here. Weather, ignorance and the perception of what it is like here are what keep people away. 

Have you ever been down Hastings/East Hastings in Vancouver/Burnaby? Makes our downtown look like the Garden of Eden and it's cleaned up from what it was 10 years ago. I do business with 3 locations along that strip and it is not uncommon for the metal roller shutters to stay closed all day while people work inside and the rear parking areas are 10ft fences with barbed wire on top.
Winnipeg is in no way the worst downtown in the country and is not what keeps people from coming here. Weather, ignorance and the perception of what it is like here are what keep people away. 

Have you ever been down Hastings/East Hastings in Vancouver/Burnaby? Makes our downtown look like the Garden of Eden and it's cleaned up from what it was 10 years ago. I do business with 3 locations along that strip and it is not uncommon for the metal roller shutters to stay closed all day while people work inside and the rear parking areas are 10ft fences with barbed wire on top.
Winnipeg is in no way the worst downtown in the country and is not what keeps people from coming here. Weather, ignorance and the perception of what it is like here are what keep people away. 

I read those too - you're referring to them without the proper context
1. All Canadian museums operate as non-profit organizations
2. Most Canadian museums are primarily funded by both governments and foundations

Don't confuse the issue with facts.

I've booked quite a few field trips groups at CMHR. They do have dates where they are fully booked. 
As does the MB. Museum - I was there on Friday with 40 grade 11s - the place was busy. 

That's too funny - maybe they don't want to meet you? 😄

They'd never think to add a functioning indoor bathroom.

So, it's a soft cap now? This is bizarre. 
Somewhere in Regina, they're filling houses with bunk beds. We're back in business baby! 

around the 6:30 mark I had to stop and go get the hanky.  Wow....you hear about how much the fans and the organization are loved by the players, and vice versa obviously, but when you hear it spoken in such a heartfelt manner, it really hits home.  How often do you hear players in leagues like the NBA or NHL talk like this?  Not very often.  They're in a city, get their paycheque, maybe win a Cup or two, and they are off to the next place in free agency, see ya later.  Amazing.

Globe and Mail rated Winnipeg as the 3rd most livable city in Canada.  It has its problems, especially downtown, but so do many cities.

You’re over the top with this. 
 

Your wife had the better idea, even more so if you come across to the West side. Check out Clandelboye or Petersfield and you’ll be amazed at how great those communities are. 

Your wife had the better idea, even more so if you come across to the West side. Check out Clandelboye or Petersfield and you’ll be amazed at how great those communities are. 

there's a million things I could list about Winnipeg in the summer.... a lot have to do with drinking on patios, so what that says about me, I don't know. Saffron's rooftop. Beer Can at the Granite, The Leaf, Fort Whyte, The Forks (love grabbing a beer at The Common and going to sit in the muskoka chairs overlooking the river).... Lots of fishing and golfing opportunities within the city....... Bombers games obviously, but also Goldeyes games at one of the nicest small market parks in North America....... I could go on and on. I'm a rural Manitoban, and will always love rural MB the best, but I absolutely ADORE Winnipeg in the summer (and think more of it in winter than most, but that's just me)...

Your wife had the better idea, even more so if you come across to the West side. Check out Clandelboye or Petersfield and you’ll be amazed at how great those communities are. 

I’m in Buffalo enough to confirm it is a dump. 

Downtown Winnipeg has problems but it is no dumpier than Edmonton or Hamilton, Regina, etc… 
 
Philadelphia has parts of it that are so beyond dump you would be surprised human beings live there  
 
Winnipeg is a great place to live and not a great place to visit really. 
 
Vancouver is awesome. I also saw people doing needle drugs in an alley with no care in the world and drug addicts wandering around all over. 

There are lots of things about Winnipeg taken for granted by the people that live here.
Big one for me... our tree canopy is uncommon for a city our size, and is usually overlooked and underappreciated... not just for the natural beauty it lends our city but actual economical and environmental benefits (passive cooling, prevention of heat island effects, habitat for wildlife and pollinators). You can barely walk outside for 2 minutes on a hot day in Arizona, scurrying from A/C to A/C, what a great place to live 🙄. In my travels I'm often left wondering 'where did all your trees go?'. Looks like some cities were bombed by Agent Orange, barely a stick of vegetation anywhere to be found. Hot as hell and unbearable. I couldn't live in a place where the only trees are at a park you have to drive to to visit.
Anecdotal... crime is real here, I've been a victim of property theft multiple times (in a nice part of sunny St James no less)... BUT, I worked at Portage and Main for years, my late shifts ended at 10pm, caught my bus back to St James 100% of the time without issue. Likewise catching the 16 or 18 by The Bay, you keep your head on a swivel and don't flash your valuables but again 100% zero issues, ever. Yes I'm male but I'm not big or intimidating, if anyone got the idea to mug me I wasn't about to scare them off or take them physically, yet I never had a problem with anyone, ever, and there was plenty of opportunity. All that said, the criticism that downtown is a ghost town after work lets out is valid... unless you go straight to a restaurant or bar after work there is nothing else to do.
Concerts, festivals, comedy shows... Winnipeg is no longer a flyover city when it comes to entertainment... in fact, we've only been getting better and better for decades. WAG and RWB are world class (and yet, I bet less than 1/3 of Winnipeggers have visited either, let alone both). Nowadays, I have to pick and choose which awesome concerts and live shows I'm going to attend because I couldn't possibly attend them all, and I always have tickets to look forward to.
So much to see and do here, if you just go out and do it.

as with any city, Winnipeg has its problem areas. It also has a lot of bright spots. I enjoy winter there, and know that many others do, too, but I can see how it's problematic for many. In summer, though? It's the most underrated city in Canada. I very much look forward to becoming a full time Winnipegger before too much longer (or, at least, quasi-Winnipegger.... my wife is a fan of East Selkirk area, and I'm partial to Lorette, but for all intents and purposes, we'll be Winnipeggers before too long...) 

well...I lived in both cities...at different times...also multiple times....as well as a few extended stays in the U.S....and now have been back here for 18 yrs...theres a reason....just sayin...and I am not a born and bred Manitoban so no bias from growing up here
Urban decay in all the big cities...the warts...crime....poverty...it's the same everywhere....and I seen many way worse than here, and I have seen areas I get a lil freaked in...and I dont get freaked out easily

From my experience, the people who complain about Winnipeg as if it's some unique Unicorn when it comes to crime and decaying infrastructure etc etc, have also not lived for any amount of real time somewhere else that is comparable. Or visited for short periods of time.

You're from TO and are blinded on anything not Toronto. I had a friend visit for the first time ever in late October, stayed at the Alt across from the arena, walked to the Forks and Human Rights Museum. He couldn't stop glowing about what a great experience he had (Friday to Saturday). I will take the impression of someone that lives in Europe, has lived in LA and travels all across NA every year over anything you have to offer about our city.
PS. I was in Toronto Dec 14th to 15th and spent Thursday evening downtown, thoroughly enjoyed the experience, including the Christmas market. Not quite Vancouver in December but a great experience.