CANMORE – The Stan Rogers memorial stage will be getting a slight facelift this summer.
Town council unanimously approved the project that will see the flooring replacement project continue, but not before new issues were discovered with some of the structural posts.
“The structure is in need of repair before any other work can continue and is recommended to occur before regular programming activity returns to the stage,” a recent staff report stated.
When the flooring replacement project – which had been approved in the 2021 capital budget – was started in April, workers found eight structural posts had deteriorated below a safe level.
The report highlighted six of the posts are embedded into the ground and two are encased in concrete.
The project will see the floor joists removed, supporting the building with more bracing, removing the compromised sections of the eight posts, pouring concrete piles with mountain brackets and reattaching the posts to the new brackets.
“This is a significant undertaking and labour intensive,” the report emphasized.
The flooring project was already set at $10,000 and an additional $65,000 was approved to come from the asset rehabilitation and replacement reserve. The flooring project was also intended to help prevent rabbits from nesting under the structure.
Stephen Hanus, the Town’s manager of facilities, also said long-term items such as raising the stage, increasing the power supply and drainage improvements were also identified. The report noted the estimated cost to raise the stage would be about $200,000 and come from reserves, but staff recommended it wait until stakeholders had been brought into the discussion.
“Extending the life of the current stage will allow enough time to engage the other stakeholders in the community and create a plan for the future,” stated a letter from the Canmore Folk Music Festival, adding its support for the project.
The stage has been in the community for almost four decades, having been built in 1983 as part of a community initiative. The 1,400 square foot venue hosts popular events such as the Canmore Folk Music Festival, the annual Canada Day celebration, the Highland Games and the Pine Tree Players theatre productions.
Organizers of the Canmore Folk Music Festival, a fixture in the community since 1978, previously announced a hiatus in 2021 due to COVID-19. The Canmore Highland Games have announced they will be running Sept. 4-5.
Administration hopes the repairs can be completed before the end of the summer, but it would mean the building would be unable to be used until then.
