Break on through to the other side

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 22/09/2015 (3668 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The North End had a major breakthrough last week.

On Sept. 16, community members lined up to take their best shot at the old
Merchants Hotel.

The sledgehammer-swinging event signified the transformation of the once notorious
Selkirk Avenue bar and beer vendor into an education/housing complex and community hub.

The three-storey building, constructed in 1913, is being converted into Merchants Corner. The new facility, expected to open in early 2017, will include a café, 30 rent-geared-to-income housing units and classroom space for the Community Education Development Association’s (CEDA) pathways education program and the University of Winnipeg’s urban and inner-city studies program.

Elder Ann Callahan, a member of the Merchants Corner committee, and Kevin Settee, an urban and inner-city studies student and vice-president of the U of W Students’ Association, took the first swings at the building.

Callahan told The Times it felt great to take a whack at the infamous hotel.

“I’m not strong enough but I might have made a dent,” Callahan said.

“It’s a very happy day. We’re going to have a new, renovated building in the community that everyone in the community and outlying districts can enjoy. I think it’s going to draw people back to Selkirk Avenue.”

Callahan is one of many community members, along with local organizations like North End Community Renewal Corporation, Urban Circle Training Centre Inc., Andrews Street Family Centre and Ma Mawi Wi Chi Itata Centre Inc., who have been working behind the scenes for years to redevelop the beer-soaked bar.

The Merchants Hotel closed its doors in the spring of 2012. Since then the province has kicked in more than $15 million to the Merchants Corner project, with the community raising another $3.71 million and counting.

“This has been your (the community’s) project from day one,” said Premier Greg Selinger at the event.

“You’ve done all the hard work of designing it, lobbying for it and putting a dream in place of how we could turn this place from beer to books, as Kevin (Chief) has said, and make it a facility of learning, enrichment and lifting people up instead of holding people back.”

Ko’ona Cochrane, a North End resident and cultural educator, took a few spirited swings at the building.

“I’m totally elated that this is happening and that they’re repurposing this building into something that’s going to be productive to help move the community forward in a good way,” Cochrane said.