Options for city-owned heritage resources

[newsposter]

Updated September 2013 - see bottom post

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On City Council's agenda for March 22, 2010

NM2010-March 9
RE: CITY HERITAGE PROPERTIES
ALDERMAN JOE CECI

WHEREAS The City of Calgary is the owner of fifty-nine (59) properties with significant heritage value that are listed on The City’s Inventory of Evaluated Historic Resources;

AND WHEREAS The Calgary Heritage Strategy (2008) calls for The City to “take a strategic, long-term view of the role and value of all City-owned heritage assets”;

AND WHEREAS heritage assets require maintenance with specific attention to unique character defining elements;

AND WHEREAS The City of Calgary has many buildings to maintain and limited funding, including no ongoing maintenance or lifecycle funding for corporate or heritage buildings;

AND WHEREAS there are legislative options for maintaining heritage value without requiring City ownership;

NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that Administration be directed to review The City assets listed on the Inventory of Evaluated Historic Resources and develop asset management options.

AND FURTHER BE IT RESOLVED that Administration provide a preliminary report with recommendations to ensure heritage building maintenance and integrity for the future, and report to Council, through Land & Asset Strategy Committee by 2010 July 13.

[newsposter]

Calgary Sun story online (March 19 print edition?)

Alderman proposes selling off historic buildings
By BILL KAUFMANN, Calgary Sun
Last Updated: March 18, 2010 5:33pm
http://www.calgarysun.com/news/alberta/ ... 82671.html

Calgary Herald story
Sale of city heritage buildings urged
Calgary Herald March 19, 2010 8:00 AM
http://www.calgaryherald.com/story_prin ... 5&sponsor=

[newsposter]

City heritage worth protecting - a column by Dave Breakenridge in the Calgary Sun, April 22, 2010.

http://www.calgarysun.com/news/columnis ... 11931.html

[newsposter]

The motion (above) passed at Council. A report back is expected in June. Related news stories (March 22, 23):

CTV Calgary
http://calgary.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/ ... algaryHome

Calgary Sun
http://www.calgarysun.com/news/alberta/ ... 21231.html

[cjane]

...and another article in the Herald:

http://www.calgaryherald.com/travel/Rep ... story.html

and the CBC:

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/calgary/story/ ... uncil.html

[newsposter]

Am interim status report on review of selling City-owned heritage assets goes to Council's Land and Asset Strategy Committee on July 13, 2010. Go to www.calgary.ca, click on Council Agendas and Minutes
http://publicaccess.calgary.ca/lldm01/l ... centagenda , and look for the relevant agenda. Sometimes it doesn't work on the first click.

Basically the report outlines the work being undertaken in the review, and lists the assets. An excerpt from report LAS2010-56:

Make the Most of Heritage Assets

City-owned historic resources represent a major public investment. In order to make the most of heritage resources there are a number of use options:

1. The City can rehabilitate and maintain properties for the purpose of corporate accommodation. For example, Calgary Public Building is being restored and will provide space for critical staff accommodation shortages.

2. The City can lease heritage resources to the private sector on a long-term basis, putting onus on tenants for restoration maintenance costs. For example, Fire Hall #1 is leased for thirty years (expiring September 2019) to Budget Rent A Car for an annual rate of $1.00 with a $750,000.00 restoration requirement at tenant’s sole expense during the lease term.

3. The City can sell Heritage assets to others. Heritage resources need not always remain in public ownership. They can be legally protected by City Council and sold to the private sector. For example, the Kind Edward Hotel was transferred to Calgary Municipal Land Corporation to facilitate rejuvenation and creation of the National Music Centre in part with Cantos Music Foundation.

It is presumed (and hoped) that proceeds from any sales would go back into funding the upkeep of other City-owned heritage buildings or supporting the owners of privately-owned heritage buildings (e.g. through a grant program or other means), consistent with the Calgary Heritage Strategy...

[newsposter]

The report on City-owned heritage resources is very interesting and well worth reading. It not only lays out an approach, it provides some information on the state of some of those City-owned sites. It goes to Council's committee on Land and Asset Strategy on December 7 2010. Here is a link to the agenda, which will lead you to the report (item LAS2010-80):

http://agendaminutes.calgary.ca/sirepub ... ype=AGENDA

[newsposter]

Calgary's heritage buildings at risk of 'demolition by neglect'
City forging strategy to repair sites
By Richard Cuthbertson, Calgary Herald
December 8, 2010

(Includes comments from CHI Developement Watch director Chris Edwards...)

Read more: http://www.calgaryherald.com/Calgary+he ... z17XVUfzKc

[newsposter]

Arab: City needs strategy to preserve our heritage
By Paula Arab, Calgary Herald, December 9 2010

Read more:
http://www.calgaryherald.com/opinion/ed ... story.html

Heritage buildings are a city's greatest cultural asset
Calgary Herald December 9, 2010 Re: "Heritage buildings at risk of 'demolition by neglect,' " Dec. 8.

Read more: http://www.calgaryherald.com/Heritage+b ... z17dVry1rt

Also, CHI's Chris Edwards was interviewed on QR77 on December 8...

[newsposter]

City is deferring the reporting date on the Historic Resource Management Implementation Strategy to no later than the June 14 2011 meeting of Council's Land and Asset Strategy Committee, so mark your calendars. Below is a link to the deferral request. Here are some of the activities currently underway related to this pending report:

The following actions are in progress as part of developing the complete Historic Resource Management Implementation Strategy:
- Assess individual historic asset in terms of the City-owned Historic Asset Management Decision Model;
- Internally circulate historic assets to determine if there is a future corporate accommodation requirement, and if there is no municipal requirement identify assets for potential disposition;
- Determine estimated costs and timeline to bring historic asset portfolio to a good Facility Condition Index level;
- Determine funding gap and annual funding requirement; and
- Develop historic resource funding model implementation strategy in conjunction with Finance.

http://agendaminutes.calgary.ca/sirepub ... 844554.PDF

[cjane]

The City-Owned Historic Building Resource Management Plan was presented at a special meeting of the Land & Asset Strategy Committee on June 24. A link to the meeting agenda, the Summary Report, Building Management Plan and Capital Investment Options can be found at:


Updated link, passed at City Council meeting July 25, 2011. Item LAS2011-46:
http://agendaminutes.calgary.ca/sirepub ... temid=5902
- newsposter

The intent of the plan is to effectively restore, manage and maintain the City-owned historic building portfolio. The passing of the Administration Recommendations supports the Calgary Heritage Strategy that was adopted by Council in 2008.

Recommendations include approving that revenue from disposition and leasing of city-owned historic buildings be used for lifecycle costs, which ensures the ongoing maintenance and upkeep of heritage buildings that contribute to the urban fabric. This is good news for heritage in Calgary.

Link to the Herald article:

[newsposter]

The annual status update on the City-Owned Historic Building Management Plan went to a meeting of City Council's Land and Asset Strateguy Committee on July 25, and will be going to a Council meeting on September 9, on the "Consent" agenda. See item 3.1 in the agenda linked here: http://agendaminutes.calgary.ca/sirepub ... ype=AGENDA

The City-Owned Historic Building Management Plan discusses how the heritage properties owned by the City should be managed and protected. One way is to protect them is through municipal designation (bylaw) requiring their permanent retention. With such protection some buildings surplus to City needs may be sold, and their proceeds used to support other heritage buildings still owned by Corporate Properties. See more about this in the posts above.

Specifically discussed in this update is the disposition of of Fire Hall No. 3 (Hose and Hound pub, publicly reported as being sold), Hillhurst Cottage School and Capitol Hill School, where there are discussions to sell them to the current occupants, and the A.E. Cross House (Rouge) - it has not yet been determined whether to sell this resource. The City is also considering the future of the Reliance (Armour) Block on Edmonton Trail and a future report is pending...