Canada's military says a major training exercise in Winnipeg in the first week of May is not an invasion of the city even though some business owners are worried that the operation will disturb the peace.

Peace groups are already planning to hold a rally on March 18 to protest what they see as the "occupation" of Winnipeg.

Operation Charging Bison is a training operation designed to prepare 500 reserve soldiers for a deployment somewhere in the world in 2008 by giving them experience in urban warfare.

It's the largest military exercise ever held in a Canadian city. The reserve troops will do simulated combat missions, VIP escorts and humanitarian relief during their six-day mission in the Manitoba capital.

Col. Kelly Woiden, commander of 38 Canadian Brigade Group, says the military training operation is not an "invasion" or "occupation" and it will not be an inconvenience for Winnipeg residents.

"The impact will be minimized," he said. "Trust me, it's probably no worse than you'll see and much less than what you'd get in the construction season in the summer."

Action will largely be confined to two sections of the city – a square north and west of city hall, and old St. Boniface – and high impact operations will be held at the Manitoba Fire College training site at the north end of Winnipeg.

Woiden said the military has been working with the city for a year and has applied for every permit it needs to run Charging Bison.

He said an urban setting is necessary because reservists need urban training and CFB Shilo would not be able to provide the right kind of environment for such an operation.

But at least one business owner remains unconvinced.

Kristen Andrews, owner of Ragpickers Anti-Fashion Emporium, a vintage clothing store in Winnipeg, has been meeting with a group of business owners and community activists since details of Charging Bison were announced last year.

"I really think that if the military's going to be playing some games on the street in front of my store, it's not going to really encourage shoppers to come in."

Woiden says the reservists could end up deployed to a natural disaster somewhere in the world or could end up patrolling the streets of Kandahar in Afghanistan. The brigade includes reserve soldiers from Saskatoon to Thunder Bay.