PRINCE OF WALES ARMOURY CONSERVATION PLAN AND RESTORATION
1915 Edmonton Drill Hall, 10440 108 Avenue, Edmonton Alberta
Project
The Prince of Wales Armouries Heritage Centre was built in 1915 and the building was renovated to house the City of Edmonton Archives in 1993. The renovation included the building-within-a-building, which is required to adequately control the humidity and temperature for archival storage and also included upgrading the mechanical system to what it is today. The second floor was renovated in 2010, which included some changes/additions to the mechanical systems on that floor. The Centre was designated as a Provincial Historic Resource in 1979 and a Municipal Historic Resource in 2004.
Based on building condition assessment reports conducted for this facility and feedback from the Corporate Business Partner, Community & Recreation Facilities (CRF), it was found that the performance of the facility is declining due to aging, wear and tear of systems and components, and a variety of other factors. During the 2015-2018 budget cycle, the Phase 1 rehabilitation project was initiated to address critical items, such as roofing, boilers, cooling tower, motor control center. The Phase 2 rehabilitation project is intended to cover the rest of the facility and includes the renewal of major components within the mechanical, electrical, architectural, and structural systems.
The Prince of Wales Armouries (also known as the Edmonton Drill Hall) requires a sensitive approach to the rehabilitation work that is aligned with proper conservation practices for historic sites, given its designations, following guidance from the Standards and Guidelines for the Conservation of Historic Places in Canada, the Provincial designation, and Municipal Designation Bylaws 17890 and 13465.
This project included the following scopes of work:
- Preparation of Historic Building Record
- Historic Building Condition Assessment
- Development of a Conservation Plan
- Scope Validation for rehabilitation and establishment of a priority list
- Design and Construction of high priority rehabilitation scope items
Consultants for the restoration project
Client: City of Edmonton
Heritage Consultant: David Murray Architect
Prime Consultant: SCL Engineering, Edmonton Phase 1 and RPK Architects, Edmonton Phase 2