The Manitoba Heritage Federation is applying for an injunction to prevent demolition of the train station at Souris, Man.
The owners bought the building for $6,000 and want to tear it down for salvage. A demolition permit, approved by town council last year, gives the owners until the end of 1999 to flatten the building and to have the site cleared. Work has already begun.
Chris Vogel, a director of the heritage federation, said the building has “enormous historic importance.” The station was once CP Rail’s divisional centre for all of southwest Manitoba.
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According to Vogel, the railway station was a hub for transporting people and goods until good roads became common in the 1950s. While still in its prime, the station was a major social centre in the region. He described the railway as the engine of progress for Souris during the first half-century of its existence.
But the owners of the building believe ample time was given for efforts to save the structure. Eric Dowsett and Gareth Boys, both of Brandon, Man., reviewed different proposals brought forward, but found them either impractical or inadequate.
“We’ve looked at different situations and it’s just not going to work,” Dowsett said in a March 19 interview. “In the end it’s just not going to come anywhere close to what we see as our stake in the building.”
Dowsett said he is confident an injunction will not be granted to prevent demolition of the train station. In the meantime, however, efforts to tear the building down have been put on hold.
The Souris Municipal Heritage Advisory Committee recommended to Souris town council last year that the building be designated a municipal heritage site. The committee gathered 1,300 names on a petition in support of that designation. However, the recommendation failed to win council support.
Heritage designation?
The heritage federation has also applied to Manitoba’s culture, heritage and citizenship department to have the building designated under the heritage resources act. Such a designation would prevent demolition.
On top of that, the federation offered to arrange a tax-deductible receipt for the owners in exchange for the station. The receipt would be based on a professional appraisal of the building, which pegged the structure’s value at $127,000. The receipt would translate into a tax savings of at least $25,000 for the owners, Vogel said. He cited another possible scenario that would more than double the returns to the owners.
But with less than a year remaining in their demolition permit, Dowsett said they can spare no more time for negotiations. They need to salvage lumber from the station to move ahead with other projects they have planned, he said.
The Souris Station Committee, a nonprofit organization, wants the building restored for commercial, community and tourism purposes. The committee, which is gathering funds to buy and refurbish the structure, also wants to promote awareness of the region’s heritage through that site.
