Work progressing on Sault’s own Parks Canada jewels (12 photos)

Parks Canada staff at the Sault Ste. Marie Canal National Historic Site want the landmark location to become a prime gathering place for people in the downtown core.

Rehabilitation of the site’s historic structures continues with that goal in mind.

As reported earlier by SooToday, work is being done to restore the site’s stores building, apart from other major work currently being done to the superintendent’s house (improvements to the parking lot and main administration building have already been done).

“We’re in the final stages (before completion of the stores building)...we expect to be completed this fall,” said Barry Guzzo, Parks Canada project manager.

Work began on the ambitious stores building project in 2016.

The stores building will be for visitors to the Canal site to enjoy, the first stop on their visit to the site’s other attractions, such as the canal itself.

“We want to open the facility up to accommodate more practical uses of the facility for current and future generations,” Guzzo said.

Over the years, the stores building’s foundation shifted (for safety reasons, the building was closed in 2010).

Crews painstakingly removed each individual stone from the south wall’s red sandstone surface, cataloguing and safely storing each one while the building’s foundation was repaired.

Most of the original red sandstones from the south wall have been put back in place, while the newer stones are red sandstone replacements.

Parks Canada staff first noticed new cracking on the south wall of the stores building 12 years ago, Guzzo said.

“It was at the point where the building was at potential failure and we evacuated the building. At first we thought we could just beef everything up and hold it together structurally, but previous attempts at that had failed.”

Now, Guzzo said, “this project enabled us to connect the building to the bedrock, and it’s not going anywhere (referring to the stores building’s new stability).”

The stores building’s interior has undergone a dramatic transformation.

Once resembling a First World War battle scene, full of mud, trenches and water, it has now been refurbished.

Guzzo said the interior brick walls have been specially treated so that lead paint, used to colour the bricks when the building was constructed in 1895, have been ‘encapsulated’ to remove the harmful effects of lead for visitors and staff.  

“This project wasn’t the most complex I’ve been involved in but every project comes with its own challenges, and the experiences of this project were rather unique, so it’s always going to have a special place in my career to have had the pleasure and honour to have worked on this project,” Guzzo said.

“For me it’s personally very gratifying (being a project manager). There are no two days that you come in and work on these facilities that are the same. It’s always new, it’s always challenging. You can’t get bored working for Parks Canada.”

Funding for the stores building project comes entirely from a $2.2 million federal funding announcement first made in 2015, said Stephane Comeault, Parks Canada northern Ontario field unit public relations and communications officer.  

Meanwhile, after a June start, repairs to the exterior of the Canal Site’s superintendent’s house are coming along under the guidance of Bachir Nedjar, Parks Canada project manager.

“The completion date for this project is for the end of this September, and we’re about 60 per cent complete, there are no issues so far,” Nedjar said.

“The first phase deals with the house’s exterior, phase two the interior. Phase one includes rebuilding the roof, its shingles are 35 years old. We’re also working on the restoration of the decorative features and finials where they’re rotting, and the windows.”

Work is also being done on the veranda to restore it to its original state, as well as the chimney.

Crews are striving to restore the house’s existing materials, avoiding replacement with new, modern materials wherever possible, Nedjar said.

The interior of the house, once completed, will be open to the public to enhance visitor experience, Nedjar said.

“I feel contributing to a project like this is not only helping the present generation to profit from this gem, but it’s also for the future generation,” Nedjar said.

The former Conservative government announced, in July 2015, it would spend over $12 million for the much-needed repairs to buildings and other infrastructure at the Sault Ste. Marie Canal National Historic Site, including:

• $1.2 million for the superintendent's residence, where summer teas, weddings and educational programs may be hel
• $2.2 million for the stores building
• $5.9 million for restoration and protection of the site's powerhouse and associated structures
• $3 million for design and repaving of the site's entry road

It is hoped all repairs to the site will be done by 2020.