Hangar 11 saved from the wrecking ball — for now

Heritage advocates won a little breathing space for Blatchford’s Hangar 11 on Monday, convincing councillors to patch the roof and wait to see reuse options before tearing down the Second World War-era structure.

City officials were planning to tear it down before selling the land to the Northern Alberta Institute for Technology, but advocates pointed to examples across the globe where similar open-span structures are repurposed for indoor soccer and other community recreation, public markets, maintenance facilities or even a microbrewery.

The Blatchford vision approved by city council calls for at least some of the hangars on-site to be preserved and reused for recreation or cultural activities in the neighbourhood.

However, this is the last hangar standing. All other hangars on the Blatchford site — including others involved in the Second World War effort — were taken down with little fanfare.

“It’s a very significant building,” said private heritage consultant Donald Luxton, who paid for his own flight from Vancouver just to plead for its preservation. It’s listed among Canada’s top 10 most endangered heritage buildings by the National Trust for Canada.

The hangar is a tangible reminder of Edmonton’s war effort, where it formed a critical link in the resupply chain that turned the tide and helped the Allies win the war. It’s also a great example of the kind of heritage building that is easily repurposed, bringing additional value and character to a new development.

City officials said it would cost between $14 million and $20 million to fully restore the hanger, but heritage advocates weren’t asking council to commit those dollars today. All they wanted was for Edmonton to maintain the facility for a few more years while studying the options.

Council’s executive committee voted to do just that Monday. That means city officials will do a functional use study and explore what partnership funding — private or governmental — might be available. They’re scheduled to report back to council in the fall of 2019.

Hanger 11 is a 7,400-square-metre building with a huge open span that was built in 1942 by the United States Army Air Force. It’s made of B.C.-sourced, old-growth Douglas fir, which becomes incredibly hard as it ages. Based on an initial analysis, it appears the structure is solid, and any damage from a past leaky roof is cosmetic.

The open span is the real strength of the building, making it ideal for many different uses, said Coun. Ben Henderson.

“Coming from a theatre background, that kind of space is gold because you just don’t get it anymore.”

It was Edmonton ingenuity that built this hangar, added Coun. Bev Esslinger, and that same ingenuity can find a new solution.

Nearby Hangar 14 has also been preserved. Heritage experts said that facility is also of international importance, illustrating Edmonton’s role in the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan. That one sits outside the Blatchford development and is being used to house the Alberta Aviation Museum.

Coming from a theatre background, that kind of space is gold because you just don’t get it anymore.