Long-term Logan Avenue ‘eyesore’ to be razed

The charred remains of a commercial building gutted by fire two years ago are finally slated for demolition.

The City of Winnipeg is seeking a company to tear down what’s left of the former Anco Lumber building at 960 Logan Ave.

The property has posed a safety hazard since a blaze reduced it to a burned-out shell on Aug. 6, 2023, a neighbour said.

“It’s very unsafe, and I’m glad that something is finally being done about it because it’s just dangerous … There are stairs going up there, and I’ve seen multiple people just leaning over the edge. and I don’t want to see anyone get hurt,” said Richard Elias, assistant manager of Elias Truck Service, which is located next to the property.

“(People who enter the property are) trying to find everything they can, obviously for scrap metal, but it’s just unsafe, and I feel very bad for the people that are forced to do that. And the sooner it’s cleaned up, the better.”

Elias said he spots people breaking into the site through a security fence on an almost daily basis. He said the “eyesore” has caught fire multiple times since the 2023 blaze.

Fire crews have responded to “at least 10” fires at the site over the past two years, the Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service confirmed Wednesday.

“It’s just such a dangerous, dangerous hazard … It’s a huge relief to (hear it will be) cleaned up, and I’m so happy that something is finally being done about it,” Elias said.

A tender for the demolition noted the city has budgeted $750,000 for the work.

A city spokesman said the time it takes to clean up a fire-ravaged building varies depending on a property owner’s actions.

“When looking specifically at the demolition of a vacant building that’s been damaged by a fire, a property owner typically needs to work through their insurance provider and find available demolition crews to undertake the work. In some cases, this will require extensions to the (city cleanup) order deadlines,” David Driedger wrote in an email.

Driedger said the city might take on a property’s remediation “as a final resort if a property owner fails to comply with stated deadlines.”

Once the tender is awarded and a demolition permit is approved, the contractor will be given 60 days to clean up the site, Driedger added. The city expects to award the contract this month.

The city has received one complaint about the property’s overall condition and two complaints about its security fence being breached, Driedger noted.

The city’s statement did not reveal whether the property’s owner had applied for a demolition permit.

“If the property owners successfully apply and are granted a demolition permit ahead of our tender being awarded, they would be responsible for ensuring the work is undertaken. To date, a demolition permit has not been issued to the property owners,” Driedger wrote.

The site appears to be for sale. The Free Press was not able to reach its owner.

Coun. Vivian Santos, whose Point Douglas ward includes the property, said cost can be a major impediment to getting burned-out buildings cleaned up.

“It is disappointing to see buildings that are slated for demolition still continue to stand up. I can understand the financial hardships (of owners) … but there has to be a path moving forward to get these derelict, half-torn down buildings … cleaned up and remediated,” she said.

City council has approved recent steps to crack down on rubble-filled lots, which Santos said are helping to get many properties cleaned up sooner. They include an unsafe conditions response team, which begins work on complaints about such sites within two business days instead of the previous timeline of up to 20 business days.

City council recently voted to turn the pilot project into a permanent program.

“I feel like we’re getting better. The problem task force has been able to remediate a lot of the sites a lot faster now. I think (the city also having the) option to demolish and put the fee on the property taxes … does make it a lot easier for the City of Winnipeg to take on that risk,” Santos said.

The tender requires a “wet demolition,” with advance notice to Manitoba Workplace Safety and Health, because the site is believed to contain asbestos.

joyanne.pursaga@freepress.mb.ca

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