REBIRTH: Downtown turnaround

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 22/01/2011 (5586 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A large section of Brandon’s Pacific Avenue is on the verge of a renaissance, after years of relative dormancy and collective community neglect.

Several historic buildings that once were the backdrop for the strip’s bustling railway trade and transportation industry are poised for revitalization this year, not the least of which is the former Canadian Pacific Railway building at the foot of 10th Street.

The 14,000-square-foot, two-storey building, which celebrates its 100th year in 2011, is being restored by Winnipeg-based developer Jon Hooker.

Approximately $700,000 of work will be undertaken over the next few months to restore the building’s roof and interior in preparation for lease to a commercial client.

"I think people had written this building off … but it’s amazing. You don’t see buildings built like this anymore," Hooker said of the station’s solid structural integrity. "It’s a very usable building and it’s very unique in that it has a lot of parking onsite, right beside the building."

The building’s aging drop ceiling has been removed so that the structure, once again, boasts a 16-foot ceiling and expansive windows. In addition, all interior partition walls have been removed to allow for an open concept.

While the building’s Pacific Avenue entrance will be updated to allow for full handicapped access, the former station’s passenger loading on the east side of the building — which has a federal heritage designation and features a marble staircase and the same type of wall tiles that grace the New York subway system — will be left as is.

A handful of potential clients have already expressed interest in leasing the property when renovations are complete, the most promising of which is the Workers Compensation Board of Manitoba, which is set to open a Brandon-based office in 2012.

While he would prefer a single group to inhabit the entire building, its two full floors and full basement could accommodate more than one entity, Hooker said.

"By the time we’re done, this is going to be class A office space," he said.

Meanwhile, the restoration of the historic McKenzie Seeds building on the corner of Ninth Street and Pacific Avenue will also be realized this year.

Officials with British Columbia-based land developers Resland Development Corp. are confident a tender for the construction of 90-plus condo-style residential units and a full floor of commercial space within the 100-year-old building can be advertised this spring.

"We’re almost finished our initial design and that should be in our hands within a couple of weeks," project spokesperson Daryl Carpenter told the Sun this week. "We’ll have a short review and minor tweaking, but then it’s ready for permitting.

"All things being equal, we should still be able to start this year, before summer."

The building’s basement will also be renovated to hold 40 parking stalls, while additional parking spaces will be located outside, possibly on the former CPR land across the street now owned by Hooker.

Completion of the development, dubbed McKenzie Towers, could be complete in mid- to late 2012.

And in addition to the work being undertaken on the CP Rail building and the McKenzie Seeds building, slow and steady progress is also being made on the redevelopment of the Massey Harris building on the corner of Seventh Street and Pacific Avenue.

The $6.8-million project, being headed up by Habitat For Humanity, the Canadian Mental Health Association and the Brandon Friendship Centre, will bring a mix of 58 housing units, ranging from emergency shelters to subsidized rental units to for-purchase condos, on stream in the Wheat City.

Officials with both Habitat and CMHA hope the units can be ready by late spring or early summer.

 

 

The revitalization continues on several fronts

 

In addition to the restoration of the Canadian Pacific Railway property and the former McKenzie Seeds building, a number of other projects are creating buzz in Brandon’s core.

Among the downtown properties high on the list for revitalization are:

 

* Convergys/Brandon Sun properties — A deal between the Brandon Sun and the City of Brandon will see the newspaper take ownership of the former Convergys call centre on the corner of Seventh Street and Princess Avenue this summer. Joining the Sun in the building would be Westman Immigrant Services and Assiniboine Community College’s Adult Collegiate. The city would, in turn, take over the Sun’s current property on Sixth Street, with tentative plans to demolish its buildings to make way for affordable housing.

 

* Kennedy Block — the 103-year-old property on the corner of Seventh Street and Rosser Avenue, which formerly housed the Trade Fair Exchange on its main floor, was purchased last year by local business owners Cam and Colleen Wirch. The couple plans to renovate the building’s three floors into a mix of affordable housing and commercial space.

 

* 100-block of 10th Street — This historic block of downtown Brandon is a blank canvas of sorts, as a large number of properties on both sides of the street formerly owned by businessman John Laurence were foreclosed on by Winnipeg-based Sun Mortgage Corporation earlier this year.

Among the properties are the 10th Street Emporium on the west side of the street, 44 residential rental units located above the Emporium’s storefronts and two empty commercial properties on the east side of the street, commonly known as the Brown Block.

Last summer, Sun Mortgage committed to finding a buyer for all of the properties. However, officials could not be reached this week for comment on any progress.

If the private market doesn’t come through on revitalization of the street, the Brown Block could be on the city’s radar for purchase and demolition.

Meanwhile, across the back alley from the Brown Block, on Ninth Street, sits the Brandon Inn. The aging hotel has been quietly sitting on the market for several years and has also piqued the city’s interest for future purchase and demolition.

Efforts also continue by the Brandon Folk, Music and Arts Society to secure federal funding for the Strand Project, which would see the former theatre on the east side of the 100-block of 10th Street renovated to feature a medium-sized theatre space with seating for between 250 to 420 people, as well as various office, meeting and retail spaces. The approximately $3-million project has been promised $474,000 over two years by Renaissance Brandon, as long as positive word on federal funding for the project is received by April 30.

 

* New YMCA — Downtown Brandon is also poised to welcome the YMCA’s new aquatic facility on the corner of Eighth Street and Princess Avenue. The proposed Dood Cristall Family YMCA will be built on the site of the former Beaubier Hotel, which was demolished by the city to make way for the new community recreation facility.

 

And it remains to be seen what will become of the recently vacated No.1 fire hall on the corner of Seventh Street and Princess Avenue.

The historic building is still owned by the city and is currently serving as the back-up space for its emergency dispatch services.