BATTLEFORD — The Queen's Hotel in Battleford — one of the oldest in Saskatchewan — is no more.
Travel back to 1890, and the Queen's Hotel in Battleford — at one point the oldest operating hotel in Saskatchewan and which precedes the incorporation of the Town of Battleford by 20 years — is painted as a bustling, untold luxury in the former capital of the North West Territories.
At that time, the proprietor, Damase Arcand, is said to have proudly listed the attributes of the Queen's Hotel as one which included parlours for ladies, sample rooms for commercial travellers, bathrooms and, most importantly, good stabling on the premises.
"Many sought the comforts of the elegant dining room on the main floor; among them was a partridge that walked in one Sunday morning in September of 1890. The bird walked in, then flew to the curtain rod and calmly watched as the other guests continued their breakfast," reads an old placemat which recounts a century of history on it's birthday in 1984, found in the now-dilapidated hotel days before its destruction.
But as of Feb. 29, for the historic hotel in Battleford — now a far cry from it's luxury status as many of the hotels historic elements languish in varying degrees of dereliction, with gutted rooms with dirty walls and broken glass, broken furniture laying on dirty floors, and exposed electrical wires hanging above abandoned bars — is gone.
Though the owners had set the demolition for Feb. 26, nearly six months after the council of the Town of Battleford unanimously voted to move forward with an order of demolition on Aug. 21, 2023, a winter storm followed by severe cold snap, delayed the inevitable.
The building fell instead on Feb. 29. Watch the video below.
See these galleries for more photos: Part I and Part II
"The Queen's [Hotel] has been a gathering spot for our community for generations, and many residents have memories from over the years," Mayor Ames Leslie told SASKTODAY.ca in a Feb. 26 statement prior to the delay.
Adding that the town does not own the property, nor is the town doing the demolition, he noted that the decision to demolish is that of the owners.
“It is unfortunate to see the Queen's [Hotel] disappear from the landscape, however, [the] council [of the Town of Battleford] supports this decision as the building has fallen into disrepair to the point where the projected cost to revitalize is not feasible for the ownership group," Mayor Leslie added.
"Not to mention the public safety concerns the fire departments and building inspectors have with the building's current state."
Last year, the town argued that the building had become the target of vandalism and dereliction, and posed a risk to public safety as it may attract more vandalism and possibly arson.
Ryan Mackrell, the town's community planner, told council in August 2023 that the town had received numerous complaints about the condition of the building, the property was continuously becoming derelict, an eye-sore, and was a danger to the community.
The town also had issued several orders to the property-owners in 2023, but said none of those orders were followed.
The Kim family, which owns both the Windsor Hotel and Hinabi Sushi expressed disappointment with the town back in late 2023 as they felt council's decision to order a demolition was done without giving them enough notice.
In a firey conversation with the mayor of Battleford, the delegation to council also voiced an inability to meet the deadline which at that time was slated for Nov. 1, 2023.
In a letter presented to town council at their Sept. 18 meeting, Myungok Kim offered three plans for the future of the hotel — each with an extension of the deadline to demolish.
Plans which included the erection of a four-story building to accommodate three commercial retail units on the first floor, and 18 rental houses through the second to fourth floor, the sale of the building, or a two year-extension in order to accomplish the demolition.
The Kim family has been unavailable for comment at the time of publication and the reason for the demolition at this time, or whether investors for a new building have been found, is unclear.
"It's too bad that an historic building is going to be gone once again. But ... a person can't make former owners fix up the building," Bernadette Leslie, manager of the Fred Light Museum in Battleford told SASKTODAY.ca.
"And with it being in such disrepair, right from the start once I heard there were complications with it, I figured it would end up being on the wrecking ball."
"I hope that they'll be able to save the Queens Hotel sign," she added, noting that they've made the request and that it will depend on the weight and size at the time of demolition.
"At least we can save one piece of that landmark."
Despite the request, the sign was seemingly not saved on demolition day.
At the town's Oct. 16 council meeting, they later updated the order to March 1, 2024, giving the owners time to demolish the building before the town would be required to step in and do the demolition. At that time, the mayor noted they would have until Feb. 28 to demolish the site.
With files from Averil Hall
