The mayor and council of the Village of Neilburg have demolition on their minds. They wish to tear down the building at the southernmost corner of L. E. Gibbons Centre Street that most recently was a video arcade and an antique store.
The building, located at number 8, is owned by Rob Mikesh. He closed his business in 2006 and moved to Lloydminster to find other employment, but he continues to own the property and hoped to return to Neilburg upon his retirement.
The village administration, however, had other ideas. They hired Ron Klassen, a bylaw enforcement officer out of Delisle, who provided his opinion that the building is unsafe and a danger to the public. It was suggested the building be torn down as soon as possible, preferably before winter sets in.
"It's been standing there for about 90 years," said Mikesh at the September village council meeting. "What's the rush? If it has stood for that long, a few more months won't make a significant difference."
Mikesh expressed some frustration, because, while the building lay vacant, vandalism occurred and part of the suspended ceiling was torn down and other damage was done to the interior.
The village council wanted Mikesh to pay for a survey to be done to determine the structural integrity of the property, however that would mean a costly outlay of several thousand dollars. Mikesh was willing to invest some money to improve the condition of the building, but he didn't want to pay a substantial sum for a survey only to have the village go ahead with their demolition plans, as then he would have been out additional sums. If the village pushed for demolition, they would expect Mikesh to pay for the work and the clean-up of the site that was estimated to cost somewhere in the range of $20,000 to $30,000.
There are already three vacant lots on Neilburg's Centre Street, which include the site of the former hotel, the lot between the community hall and the bowling alley, and the former location of Neilburg Fine Foods, between the credit union and the seniors' centre.
"I'm just asking for a bit more time," said Mikesh, at the September meeting. "The building has a long and colourful history and means a great deal to me and to many of the older folk in the community who knew it when it was in its glory. I'd love to see it restored but that might be impossible if the village council continue to push for a hurried demolition to take place."
Mikesh was given approximately a month to obtain a survey. He appeared at the Oct. 7 regular council meeting and advised that it was not cost effective for him to provide one. Council had sent him correspondence indicating that he was "out of time" and they intended to proceed with whatever actions they felt necessary to ensure public safety.
In response, Mr. Mikesh asked for a further period of time to remove his personal belongings from the building. He advised that he was not well and he was tired of being harassed by the village council and their bylaw enforcement officer, so in return for a seven-month extension, he offered to sign over the property to council. After a brief discussion, council agreed to give Mikesh until May 31, 2014 to vacate the property.
After that date, they will proceed with whatever actions they deem necessary.
Although it is uncertain when the building was erected, according to the Big Manitou Country History Book (1905-1980), its documented history began sometime after 1924 when it became a general store. It was owned by A. E. Edwards, who called himself a general merchant, and the store was managed by Wilf Gordon, who had previously been a clerk for Ernie Edwards at another store in Marsden. Wilf Gordon later became a partner in the business and it was then known as Edwards and Gordon's General Store.
It is unknown how long these men ran the store, but eventually George and Inez Runge bought Edwards and Gordon's operation and ran the store for another 18 years. They specialized in grocery items.
In 1974, the store was closed and the building was sold to Guy Cayford. He resold it to the local senior citizens group for use as a drop-in centre. The group needed to raise $5,000 to make the purchase and canvass teams were set up to fundraise. Enough money was collected and the grand opening was held on Oct. 20, 1975 with officials doing the ribbon cutting in front of a packed house. After the seniors citizens built their new facilities, the building was used as a daycare centre. And finally, it came into the possession of Mikesh.
