The area of Winnipeg known as Inkster is located in the Northern region. To the North is Jefferson Avenue. To the South is Inkster Boulevard. King Edward Street is found to the West and Keewatin Street is located to the East. The development on the residential area began in the late 1880s.When the Main Street Underpass was completed in 1904, the area became more attractive for people to settle in.
Migrants from Europe began to heavily populate this area of Winnipeg around 1910 and the following decade. In the past, this was the most socially deprived area of Winnipeg. It was full of people out of work and even heavy drug use. Some of the older areas still have severe issues with poverty and with homes that aren’t suitable for living. However, Inkster isn’t deserving of the bad reputation is has, and plenty of efforts have been made to positively promote the good things this area offers.
The Inkster area seems to be a place for many younger couples or families. It is a lower income location and many people find their first apartment or home in this area. They may stay here for a long time or they may move into another area of Winnipeg over time. Approximately 55,000 people live in this area. The largest sectors of the population are Caucasian and Aboriginal. This is also an area that has a high Asian population.
One of the deterrents with this area of Winnipeg is that it does have a high crime rate. Mostly, with theft and petty crimes. Poverty is an issue in some of the neighbourhoods of Inkster, and that can play a role in these types of crimes occurring.
The increase of neighbourhood watch programs, prevention efforts, and police monitoring have helped to reduce the instances in recent years so that is very encouraging. Statistics show that crimes reported in this part of Winnipeg dropped by 1/3 between 2011 and 2013.
The community known as Inkster is close to the various industrial park locations that offer plenty of types of work. The area is also fairly close to the airport. Many individuals come to this location that attend the Red River Community College. There are several small lakes and nice parks in this area.
There are two schools located in this area. One of the schools is for all students up to grade 8. The other school is for high school students only. The schools have low class room sizes which is very encouraging as it allows for more one on one attention per student.
The oval shape of Shaughnessy Park is very attractive, and it only enhances the landscaping all around it. There are plenty of trees and walking trails and many people enjoy the quiet atmosphere it provides. Residents of Inkster are commonly found here relaxing and enjoying their free time. The name stems from the President of the Canadian Pacific Railway, Sir Thomas Shaughnessy.
There are quite a few neighbourhoods in the Inkster area of Winnipeg to pick from. They include:
Tyndall Park
The area known as Tyndall Park was actually created due to overall redistributing in 2008. The population in this area is about 22,000. There are some very old homes found here, dating before World War II. The majority of them were built in the 1970s and 1980s. There are plenty of churches and commercial property locations in this area. There are also various lakes and ponds as well as recreational facilities.
Inkster Gardens
A lovely area to consider is Inkster Gardens. It is very close to the industrial park, which is why it is so appealing to those that work around there. There are several parks and small lakes that are also close by for recreational fun. The homes here are modern and there are about 700 of them. Little Mountain Park for winter skiing isn’t far and there are also two golf courses.
There is a very old cemetery found here, dating back to 1812. The early Selkirk settlers are buried here. The parish wasn’t established until 1820 and there are several old architectural churches in this part of Inkster. The Dominion Shopping Centre is a great place to find various items of clothing, gifts, and unique collectibles.
Weston
The area known as Weston is a small working class community. It is close to Keewatin Street and Logan Avenue, both offer several retail stores. You may hear this area referred to as CPR Town. This is because there used to be so many railway workers that lived in this area. All but 20% of the homes here were developed prior to 1960. The population in this part of Inkster is about 6,000. About 25% of the population are Aboriginals and about 20% of them are Filipino.
This is a poorer area of Winnipeg, with the average household earning about 65% of what the typical household in Winnipeg does. Many efforts have been put into motion to make housing more affordable here. This can be a prime location to buy a home for a low cost that needs to have some upgrades done to it.
$261,000 is the average price of homes in Inkster. However, there are many homes that are less than $200,000 when they go on the market here. They are often smaller homes and some of them are in need of some repairs. Getting a lower price if you can do upgrades on your own can help to increase the value of the home in very little time.