A father of five is challenging Vivian Santos for the Point Douglas council seat. The ward stretches across several neighbourhoods of diverse cultural and economic backgrounds. It includes Portage and Main, The Exchange, Tyndall Park and the Inkster Industrial Park. University of Winnipeg urban studies professor Aaron Moore said it is an odd makeup. “If there’s any ward that looks like it’s been gerrymandered, it’s that one. I’m not saying that’s why it looks like that,” Moore said. The incumbent, Vivan Santos, is seeking a third term. She’s a national arm-wrestling champion and was appointed to the mayor’s Executive Policy Committee part way through the term, chairing the community services committee. “I’ve done some community consultations with area residents and looking to improve some of our parks, and build a new gymnasium, and rebuild the Arlington Bridge,” Santos said. Within the ward are multiple homeless shelters, the most encampments in the city and the newly minted supervised drug consumption site. Santos supported a ban on encampments in public places like playgrounds and the province’s Your Way Home Strategy, which has housed at least 260 people. She is not in favour of the province’s supervised consumption site. “I just don’t believe at this time that is the correct way to tackle the addiction crisis that we’re faced with,” Santos said. “We need more detox centres.” Santos said she is endorsing Scott Gillingham for mayor. Her lone opponent is Mark Requinta. According to his website, the father of five works in the staffing office at St. Boniface Hospital. Like Santos, Requinta has a number of signs throughout the ward. He declined CTV News’ request for an interview. Moore said it is unlikely Santos would lose this seat. “She will benefit from the incumbent advantage in large part because there isn’t a really big name running against her,” Moore said.
