Gail asper has a goal that would not only realize a dream of her late father, but would also kick-start the Manitoba economy at the same time.

The only daughter of the late media mogul Izzy Asper picked up the gauntlet for the proposed Canadian Museum for Human Rights immediately following her father’s death three years ago.

Thus far, she has spearheaded the successful fundraising of more than two-thirds of the $311-million price-tag from public and private coffers. With just $95 million to go, she can see the finish line.

The proposed museum, which would be located at the Forks, Winnipeg’s historical meeting place at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers near the heart of downtown, would depict the story of the struggle for human rights around the world throughout history. The museum’s proponents expect to break ground on the project next spring, with a target to open in 2010.

“I think the museum is an opportunity to take Winnipeg back to its level at the turn of the 20th century,” Asper says. “It would be unthinkable for us to miss this opportunity to challenge everybody’s perception of what’s achievable. Winnipeg could be the Chicago of the north. Or, better yet, Chicago could aspire to be the Winnipeg of the south.”

Asper notes that Manitoba doesn’t have the huge tourism draws of other areas, such as Niagara Falls and the CN Tower in southern Ontario, the Rideau Canal in Ottawa or Whistler Mountain in British Columbia, but she is confident the museum would be able to fill much of the void.

Sure, American hunters and fishermen visit lodges in the province’s northern regions for a week or two at a time, but that doesn’t bring them into Winnipeg for extended periods beyond landing at and departing from the airport. The same is true of tourists who go polar bear- and whale-watching in Churchill, Man.

“We need to have something this city is known for besides [the departed Winnipeg Jets NHL team],” she says. “How do we recruit people to live here when they think they’re taking a big step downward?”

Asper says cultural tourism is growing in popularity around the world as people increasingly look for “meaningful tourism experiences.

“People are looking for history and art museums. They don’t just want to go waterskiing; they want to learn about a community and a culture,” she says, noting that the museum could be the focal point to attract educated, well-heeled tourists who would spend their dollars in Winnipeg’s hotels, restaurants and stores.

Asper says conservative third-party estimates predict 250,000 visitors to the museum annually. They would generate about $171 million in direct expenditures into the Canadian economy and another $122.5 million in spinoffs. In Asper’s home province, the museum would require 1,710 person-years of employment in construction and provide almost 500 direct and indirect jobs each year after its third year of operation.

And the $95 million that still needs to be raised isn’t that much money when it is broken down, Asper says. If 1,800 people were to donate $10,000 a year over five years — which would be roughly $5,000 after taxes — the shovel could go in the ground tomorrow.

Many members of Canada’s financial services industry have come on board, including the Big Five banks. Bank of Nova Scotia leads the way with a donation of $1.5 million, followed by Royal Bank of Canada and CIBC at $1 million each, and TD Financial Group and Bank of Montreal at $750,000 apiece.

Proud Winnipegger Sandy Riley, chairman of Richardson Partners Financial Ltd. and former CEO of Investors Group Inc. , and his wife, Deborah, have donated $500,000.

Asper says she is hoping to raise $15 million from international sources and is not bothering with anybody who is not an ultra-high roller. At the top of her hit list are Microsoft Corp. chairman Bill Gates and Starbucks Coffee Co. chairman Howard Schultz.

“There’s no question that, if you got these guys on a good day, they could donate $15 million in one fell swoop,” she says. IE