Emeka Nnadi Park becomes 1st in Winnipeg named after member of African community

A park in the Bridgwaterneighbourhood is the first to be named after a member of Winnipeg's African community, the city says and it's namedfor one of the people who helped to make the area what it is today.

A ceremony was held Saturday for the official naming ofEmeka Nnadi Park, at 119 BridgelandDr. in the southwest Winnipeg neighbourhood.

It's named for architect Emeka Nnadi, a member of Winnipeg's Nigerian community whois the CEO and founder of Nnadi Group, a Winnipeg architecture firm, and has done work with the Manitoba Housing and Renewal Corporation for almost two decades.

Nnadi, who is from Igbo descent,helped develop the Bridgwater area, transforming what in 2006 was roughly 600 hectares(1,400 acres)of provincially owned farmland into multiple neighbourhoods with thousands of homes.

Dozens of people in the Igbo and broader Nigerian communities showed up for the ceremony Saturday, includingNnadi himself.

"To me, it represents a certain level of acknowledgement for good, hard and maybe inspired work," Nnadi said. "Butthat pales in comparison to what I think it means to the community at large."

The ceremony was also attended by Winnipeg Mayor Scott Gillingham andJanice Lukes, the city's deputy mayor and councillor for the area.

"The neighbourhood of Bridgwateris just this beautiful, multicultural, diverse community," said Lukes.

"It grew twice as fast as anticipated because people love it. It's beautiful. And while we're honouring a person in the bigger picture, we're honouring the community, we're honouring diversity."

She said this is the first park the city has named after a member of the African community, and that doing sois a small way to highlight the city's multiculturalism.

"This is a remarkable landmark, a forever-standing event that will brighten the heart" and make people of colour"feel proud to be a part of this city," master of ceremonies Ayodele Odeyemisaid to the crowd.

"We say we're inclusive, we're diverse. Here, today, is the evidence."

Nnadi said he hopes the naming inspires future generations of people who may feel they're underrepresented to "step into what they can be."

"That's what it means to me," he said. "Ittells me that I do live in an amazing community, in a wonderful country, wonderful province and a fantastic city that embraces talent in all of its forms."