It’s arguably the most exciting time in Winnipeg’s history since it was the “Chicago of the North” more than a century ago. Yet, many Winnipeggers refuse to be happy. And for the most stupid of reasons.

There is roughly $2 billion in infrastructure and construction projects in production in the city today – a record for the Manitoba capital, no matter how you look at it.

The Canadian Museum for Human Rights ($351 million); a new stadium for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers ($190 million); and a sports, hospitality and entertainment district downtown featuring hotel, office and retail space ($600 million) will change the face of Winnipeg in a way that would have been unimaginable just a few years ago.

Yet, how do Winnipeggers react to these game-changing developments? They complain if the construction falls behind.

Granted, the brain trusts behind these projects would have been well advised to underpromise and overdeliver. But let’s get real. Projects of this size require thousands of man-years to complete. If the flu runs through the rebar guys, the completion date could be a crapshoot.

You need only the most basic knowledge of the construction climate in Winnipeg to know that resources will be stretched to the limit for the foreseeable future. Manitoba has long had one of the lowest unemployment rates in the country, so finding the necessary tradespeople for major projects often has been a matter of waiting until the previous project has finished needing them.

These are good problems to have. And they’re the kinds of challenges faced by big-league cities – something Winnipeg has been striving to be since, well, the Chicago of the North tag wore off. A decade ago, then-premier Gary Doer had joked that the crane was an endangered species in the province. People then would have killed to have labour shortages and major projects to worry about.

Football fans, in particular, have been quick to complain about the Blue Bombers starting the 2012 season in Canad Inns Stadium, a facility that has been outdated and uncomfortable for a couple of decades. The team had hoped to play its home opener in Investors Group Field; but, thanks to some construction delays, the ribbon-cutting has been delayed until September.

But the team is likely to play in the new stadium for the next 50 years – so, what’s a couple more months?

And are the delays really surprising? When you built the deck at your cottage or put the island in your kitchen, were the jobs completed on time? If something is worth doing, it’s worth doing right.

Just ask the folks at the Winnipeg Airports Authority. They had hoped to open the new, $565-million air terminal building more than a year ago. But some cracked underground pipes and a few other unforeseen problems have caused several months of delays. When the state-of-the-art facility opened last October, it was heralded as a new front door to the city that would make its citizens proud.

The airport’s construction delays? Long forgotten. So, let’s act like a big city already and not sweat the late stuff. IE

© 2012 Investment Executive. All rights reserved.