It seems there’s always money to demolish things and not enough to fix them or repurpose them…

The Remand Centre, the Coliseum, the old RAM, the Bank of Montreal on the Tegler site (a real 2 for 1!), the Walterdale Bridge, the old courthouse, the Carnegie Library, the downtown CPR Station, The Bank of Montreal on Jasper, the Annex…
 
You of all people should know that the cost of repurposing purpose-built structures is easier said than done. Not everything needs to be saved, and if removing something unusable allows for using the space for something better, that seems to be a better approach than letting it sit and deteriorate.
 
kcantor said:
It seems there’s always money to demolish things and not enough to fix them or repurpose them…

The Remand Centre, the Coliseum, the old RAM, the Bank of Montreal on the Tegler site (a real 2 for 1!), the Walterdale Bridge, the old courthouse, the Carnegie Library, the downtown CPR Station, The Bank of Montreal on Jasper, the Annex…
Click to expand...
www.forgottenedmonton.com

The Carnegie Library — Forgotten Edmonton

In the words of Todd Babiak, our old central library “is one of the icons of a lost Edmonton, a phantom Edmonton, a victim of the boom-and-bust psychology that has defined the city since its earliest days.”
www.forgottenedmonton.com www.forgottenedmonton.com

Interesting how the Carnegie faced West with the MacDonald Hotel facing its East backside.
 
supaflyryguy said:
You of all people should know that the cost of repurposing purpose-built structures is easier said than done. Not everything needs to be saved, and if removing something unusable allows for using the space for something better, that seems to be a better approach than letting it sit and deteriorate.
Click to expand...
Just because something might be more expensive doesn’t mean it’s not something worth doing…
 
Yes we certainly have failed in the past a number of times in preserving many buildings worth of keeping.

But I am not sure the way to make up for it now is to spend a lot of money and effort in trying to repurpose something with few redeeming features and also very difficult to repurpose.

However, this could be a good site for something better. I hope this may be the site for a new court house or something else beneficial.
 
I just don't see how the old remand centre was worth preserving. The thing is/was a monolithic concrete bunker in terrible condition in our downtown; demolition is the right choice IMO.

I think a new courthouse makes sense on the old remand site, however I still wonder what the plan would be with the old courthouse, which again is in a terrible state. Demolition would be lengthy and costly and I don't think the city would be pleased having a giant, vacant piece of land sit empty right beside city hall. Maybe it becomes the exclusive home of the court of appeal or provincial court, however that would still require pumping millions to bring this building up to date.
 
Just brainstorming some ideas for the current Law Courts building:
- extension of the AGA
- music venue to complement the Winspear and Citadel
- resurrection of 1 or 2 closed nightclubs (New City, Sidetrack, The Bronx, Flashback, etc.)
- food hall with T&T Supermarket or Lucky Supermarket as the main anchor
- year-round farmer's market
- School of Architecture by U of A or Grant MacEwan
- fitness facility c/w pickleball, 3-on-3 basketball and indoor/outdoor swimming pool
- condos
- affordable housing
- seniors housing or nursing home
 
Gronk! said:
Just brainstorming some ideas for the current Law Courts building:
- extension of the AGA
- music venue to complement the Winspear and Citadel
- resurrection of 1 or 2 closed nightclubs (New City, Sidetrack, The Bronx, Flashback, etc.)
- food hall with T&T Supermarket or Lucky Supermarket as the main anchor
- year-round farmer's market
- School of Architecture by U of A or Grant MacEwan
- fitness facility c/w pickleball, 3-on-3 basketball and indoor/outdoor swimming pool
- condos
- affordable housing
- seniors housing or nursing home
Click to expand...
The most pressing venue that has some funds being held by private donors for an opera house is an opera/ballet hall. I am not sure if the courthouse can be renovated for that purpose but an addition to the building may be possible while using space in the courthouse to accommodate offices, music rooms, set construction etc. for Edmonton Opera and Edmonton Ballet. It’s a perfect site and location and likely get Federal funds for a renovation.
 
20240728_141536.jpg
 
kcantor said:
It seems there’s always money to demolish things and not enough to fix them or repurpose them…

The Remand Centre, the Coliseum, the old RAM, the Bank of Montreal on the Tegler site (a real 2 for 1!), the Walterdale Bridge, the old courthouse, the Carnegie Library, the downtown CPR Station, The Bank of Montreal on Jasper, the Annex…
Click to expand...
That is a really strong list of failures to preserve some of our best buildings, and you are right about needing to value repurposing many of them. However, I don't think the Remand belongs on that list. It's long history as one of the worst prison's in the country has left a scar on a significant portion of our city's population (the new one is Canada's largest prison, and very few people staying there have been convicted of anything). Happy to see it go, would rather provincial preservation money go to the old RAM which could still be saved!
 
EdmTrekker said:
The most pressing venue that has some funds being held by private donors for an opera house is an opera/ballet hall. I am not sure if the courthouse can be renovated for that purpose but an addition to the building may be possible while using space in the courthouse to accommodate offices, music rooms, set construction etc. for Edmonton Opera and Edmonton Ballet. It’s a perfect site and location and likely get Federal funds for a renovation.
Click to expand...
The actual performance space requirements for ballet or opera would require a whole new build, especially for a proper fly system due to set pieces and lighting.
 
The Opera House idea is my fav, the building would essentially be the same size as the Jubilee Auditorium; sure you could shrink the audience chamber a bit, say 1600 seats down from 2400 and stack shops, dressing rooms and rehearsal spaces to keep the footprint in check but yes, the opera could build a new home in that space. The existing structure however, don't know how that could be kept, it's not like an office to condo refit. Now, the way the new director at the opera has the company going in a "smaller is better" direction (witness their staging a Wagner opera at the Citadel), maybe Edmonton Opera isn't interested anymore. I for one believe the City does indeed need a 1400-2000 seat fully equipped venue specifically designed for the performing arts (as opposed to touring music acts). The Jube is a road house, not great (acoustical) acoustics and is pretty much in use all the time.
 
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SarcasticMarmot said:
That is a really strong list of failures to preserve some of our best buildings, and you are right about needing to value repurposing many of them. However, I don't think the Remand belongs on that list. It's long history as one of the worst prison's in the country has left a scar on a significant portion of our city's population (the new one is Canada's largest prison, and very few people staying there have been convicted of anything). Happy to see it go, would rather provincial preservation money go to the old RAM which could still be saved!
Click to expand...
I have always found The Remand to be butt ugly and no you can't compare it to the old courthouse or the old library, two incredibly beautiful historic buildings that would have added so much to an ultra modern downtown ! 😢
 
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