_urbanite
Senior Member
Snapped these pics of this beauty earlier today
Massey Ferguson Building Redevelopment | ?m | 48s | Rise Real Estate | WZMH
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archited
Senior Member
Warehouse 101? Just kidding -- the effort here is more related to history than architectural substance...
IanO
Superstar
What I miss, is the sight of dozens of bottles of flammable liquids and rags.
KreationYEG
Active Member
Seams every week, another board or window is busted out.
IanO
Superstar
There was a fire...
KreationYEG
Active Member
Yes Ian, I’m well aware I live a block away. It’s just the continued vandalism that makes me wonder why this is a target. Even when the car show room was in there it frequently had the windows damaged. Someone with a grudge perhaps?
IanO
Superstar
Classic Edmonton vandalism and lack of care/respect.
archited
Senior Member
^^^^ you mean a lack of care and respect like this comment --
IanO
Superstar
As in it was clearly an arson.
We worked very hard to get this portion of the property incorporated into the DC2 in exchange for height and density.
We worked very hard to get this portion of the property incorporated into the DC2 in exchange for height and density.
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northlands
Senior Member
Does anyone have any history on this building they could share? I know it was Healy Ford until about a decade ago. Was it really a Massey Ferguson dealership at one point? Right smack in downtown Edm?
IanO
Superstar
Yup. Best explained by Mr. Kaba.
capitalmodernedmonton.com
ESSAY: Shafraaz Kaba
ENERGY & INDUSTRY: MAKING EDMONTON MODERN Shafraaz Kaba2007 Modernism is a much misunderstood term. It is not about the contemporary, but about a proposal for a universal ideal which began in …
capitalmodernedmonton.com
_Citizen_Dane_
Active Member
Yup. Massey Harris Co. of Canada was a major farm implements manufacturer and wholesaler. For decades the company operated out of a small and relatively inaccessible building located at the intersection of 101A Avenue and 100A Street. By the end of the Second World War they were desperate for a more modern showroom, so built this building in 1947-48.
It's important to remember, that at the time, this wasn't downtown per se. It was the middle of a warehouse district. With rail spurs nearby it allowed for their product to be easily shipped in, displayed, and shipped out.
The company merged with the British Ferguson Brown Co. In 1953 to form the Massey Harris Ferguson Co. They retained the building for several decades before it was eventually purchased by Healy Ford for use as a car dealership.
The building itself represents one of the first significant Edmonton commissions to make use of the International form. Its asymmetrical composition, with off-centred horizontal windows, surface mounted flagpole, and service stairwell on its west wall, is noteworthy.
^Unfortunately, it seems as though Mr. Kaba's work is responsible for one long standing misconception about the building's history: its architects weren't Blakey & Blakey, they were Rule, Wynn & Rule. Sadly, this misattribution's seeped into both news articles about the building and the City's very own Inventory of Historic Resources. (Not trying to pooh-pooh on Kaba's or Capital Modern's work at all, it was a truly excellent project, just putting it out there.)Yup. Best explained by Mr. Kaba.
ESSAY: Shafraaz Kaba
ENERGY & INDUSTRY: MAKING EDMONTON MODERN Shafraaz Kaba2007 Modernism is a much misunderstood term. It is not about the contemporary, but about a proposal for a universal ideal which began in …
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archited
Senior Member
You are the true authority on all things historical (Edmonton Architecture), @_Citizen_Dane_ -- thank-you for the clarifications and the real goods. Much appreciated -- discerning fact from fiction.
RH van der Rohe
New Member
Unfortunately early Modern commercial and public buildings have been remodeled, usually in terrible 80s or 90s fashion or are in really bad shape so that many people just see them as ugly brick boxes, hope more people could appreciate the simplicity and appeal of form that follows function. I hope this building can be incorporated into something similar to what was initially proposed. Love Capital Modern, it has inspired many bike rides and coffee drives.
ION
Active Member
This project breaks my heart the most in terms of a brilliant design in a great location that has yet to move forward and probably won't for a while. With 3 towers for the block even just seeing one part of it move forward would have a great start, especially the college rental apartments. I'd have killed to stay in a cool apartment across the street from class... Instead I ended up spending 4.5 years at MacEwan shuttling back and forth between Montrose, Jasper Place and the downtown campus... I don't ever want to have anyone experience that again... UGH...