Restoration work to begin soon at Met, says Canad Inns

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This article was published 20/08/2009 (5902 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

WINNIPEG – The Canad Inns hotel chain insists it is still committed to renovating downtown’s Metropolitan Theatre in the wake of rumblings about a city agency repossessing the building.

Restoration work to the exterior of the 90-year-old heritage venue “will begin within the next few weeks,” the Winnipeg hotel chain promised Thursday in a statement.

Canad Inns purchased the Met in 2006 from downtown development agency CentreVenture for $100,000, initially with the intention of creating some form of nightclub tied to a rock museum. Renovations to the structure, which has sat empty since 1987, were slated to begin by December 2007 and conclude by June 2009, under the terms of a development agreement.

Displeased with the slow pace of development, CentreVenture officials said Wednesday the agency might assume control of the structure, even though they would prefer to see Canad Inns submit plans to the city and begin the work.

On Thursday, the hotel chain issued a statement that they have already spent $500,000 on interior renovations that included capping a basement well, roof repairs, the removal of an interior drop ceiling and the installation of temporary furnace.

The chain said it has submitted preliminary interior plans to the city and has applied to demolish the non-heritage structure that sits south of the building. Canad Inns will soon apply for permits to restore the exterior and is in the midst of selecting contractors to perform the work, the statement said.

“If that’s the case, we’re very happy that’s happening,” said Loretta Martin, CentreVenture’s development director. “Have we heard it from them? Not yet.”

A spokeswoman for Mayor Sam Katz said the city will respect whatever decision CentreVenture makes with respect to the theatre.

bartley.kives@freepress.mb.ca