To save the Bay building

Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 14/02/2012 (4698 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

It is a testament to its cultural imprint that no one with serious designs on the downtown Bay building would contemplate tearing it down. Instead, owners of the iconic department store at Portage and Memorial have offered to give it to the University of Winnipeg, which is seeing big potential for the 86-year-old landmark once again becoming a hub of activity.

The building is historic, a recognized piece of the city’s heritage, its relationship with the fur trade and the company that helped open up the frontier that was Canada. Curiously, the building is not protected by any formal heritage designation.

The U of W would not alter the envelope of the building, university president Lloyd Axworthy says. He wants to use non-public funds — fees charged for continuing education, for example — to turn it into a place that draws shoppers, students, tenants and office workers. Mr. Axworthy’s longer-term idea is to found a national aboriginal arts and cultural centre in the building. He says the idea has elicited interest from private developers. What is needed is interest from municipal, provincial and federal governments.

Successive owners have closed entire floors to contain operating costs but cannot make a go of it — today, property taxes alone are almost $400,000 — with the limited retail there now. Turning the building into a place where people can live could give the project a cash flow, but it would involve serious investment. Each floor is about 80,000 square feet. If living units are to have a source of natural light, a hole will need to be punched into the building’s core to install an atrium.

The structure is solid. It was Canada’s largest reinforced concrete structure in 1925, built on piles driven to bedrock. Bringing it up to modern building codes means new heating, ventilation, electrical and mechanical systems and more. One past estimate put the price tag at $8 million per floor.

Tax increment financing schemes cobbled together by provincial and municipal governments won’t be enough, Mr. Axworthy says. Cash investments from private and public partners, perhaps in joint ownership, will be required.

Mr. Axworthy’s ambitious plans for the Bay are commendable. Winnipeggers need their governments at this table to ensure the building is viable as an anchor downtown and a piece of living history. There is a market for high-end and moderate-cost housing downtown the governments and the university can exploit and use to fund required retrofits. The broad strokes are worthy of public interest, but it is the private commitment based on an economically sound business model, that must lead the way.