Historic Calgary Public Building slated for renovation

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Colette Derworiz, Calgary Herald
Published: Tuesday, November 27, 2007

A multimillion-dollar plan to fix up a historic building in downtown Calgary could see city officials shut it down and find another spot for staff to work.

City council decided Monday to apply for nearly $4 million from senior levels of government to help renovate the Calgary Public Building, 205 8th Ave. S.E.

The building, built in the 1930s, is a historic site occupied by municipal staff and various local arts groups.

Civic officials suggested closing the building in phases to complete the required work.

However, Mayor Dave Bronconnier asked bureaucrats to consider closing the entire building rather than doing the work three floors at a time.

"In the long run, it's going to be cheaper and more prudent in my mind to shut the entire building down, renovate it -- which will probably take a year or a year and a half -- and then move our staff back in," he said, noting the city closed Old City Hall in the mid-1990s when it was restored to its original 1907 design.

Officials said they would consider the suggestion and report back to council by April on whether it would work.

"It's just a matter of going out to find a third-party lease," said Brad Stevens, the city's general manager of asset management and capital works.

Council members also asked the city to prepare a request to ask the provincial and federal government to help pay for the renovations under the Canada-Alberta Municipal Rural Infrastructure Fund, which was signed in April 2006. Each level of government, including the city, would put $1.9 million toward the final cost.

Renovations to the eight-storey building -- pegged at $12 million for the first three floors -- include replacing the boilers and the mechanical and electrical systems.

But Bronconnier said it's necessary.

"The boilers in there are original, the mechanical is literally falling apart," Bronconnier said. "It's still the only building in Calgary with a manual elevator. It's a unique feature, but it's the only one left in the city.

"You can only get so much life out of a building."

cderworiz@theherald.canwest.com