The Town of Ponoka

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The Ponoka Main Street Project

The Ponoka Main Street Project is a five-year programme of building facade rehabilitation aimed at the physical and economic renewal of the town centre. Supported by local residents and merchants, a combined approach of historic preservation, economic development, and marketing seeks to renew the historic heart and soul of the community embodied in the downtown streets and buildings.

Ponoka joins a partnership of fourteen Main Street communities across Alberta that have transformed their downtowns into lively places of business, entertainment, and recreation. As historic storefronts reemerge from beneath peeling paint and historic signs and awnings reappear, people and activity return to the main street area. Effective marketing and economic development strategies promote the town's distinctive blend of old and new and draw local shoppers, tourists, and new businesses into the community.

The Ponoka Main Street Project is supported by the Town of Ponoka and the Alberta Historical Resources Foundation through the Alberta Main Street Programme. The Project is guided by a full-time Coordinator and a seven-member Advisory Board made up of local residents and businesspeople. It is also assisted by a consulting architect and the staff of Alberta Community Development's Historic Sites Branch.

Ponoka's Main Street Project offers technical expertise and financial assistance to Ponoka businesses and property owners for the restoration of histroic buildings, the development of signs and awnings, and for marketing and business recruitment initiatives.

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PROJECT DESCRIPTIONS

Rehabilitation of the True Value Hardware Store

History

This building was originally constructed, it would appear, with two identical matching facades. The year of construction is still uncertain. The design is in the traditional Early Commercial Style, which is typified by large ground floor storefront windows, centrally located recessed entrances and narrow repeating windows on the upper floor. In addition it was typical that the top of the front elevation was finished with a large projecting cornice, in this case made from pressed metal.

The facade construction was wood frame with wood-framed storefront windows. The upper floor windows would have been wood double-hung construction. The upper floor cladding, and the cladding on the remainder of the building appears from photographs to be pressed metal in a brick pattern. This was often used as a cladding material when the budget did not allow for the real thing.

The upper floor was used as apartments. There are still remnants of the suites in the south portion. The north portion has been gutted entirely. It is interesting to note that the north portion appears to have always contained a hardware store. Thomson's Grocery and Bakery was a long-time occupant of the south portion.

Present Condition

Almost every aspect of the exterior facade has been lost over the years. The upper floor windows were removed, as were the storefront windows and recessed doors. The storefronts were replaced with aluminum-framed windows and entrance door in the north portion. The remainder of the building facade was covered entirely with metal siding.

Evolution of the Design Concept

The current building owners also own and operate the business, True Value Hardware Store. They wanted to take advantage of the assistance provided by the Main Street Project to improve the appearance of the building which they felt would be advantageous to business operations. The streetscapes and sidewalks were reconstructed in 1995-96. They felt there would be a marketing advantage to be able to build on the overall main street promotions, which are beginning to attract more people into the downtown.

The first design approach was to explore the possibility of reconstructing the facades of these buildings, per original. There is good photo documentation of the evolution of the building which is a prerequisite to attempting historical reconstruction. Unfortunately, the contractor's budget for reconstruction turned out to be considerably higher than the owners' budget.

The second design approach was a rehabilitation of the facades which generated the spirit of the original building and the historic downtown ambiance, without trying to replicate it. The materials would have been brick with stucco infill. The storefront windows and doors would have been from standard aluminum sections. Both storefronts would have been developed. The labour savings were substantial, but still did not meet the owners' budget.

The third design approach simplified the construction details. The masonry was eliminated, as was the storefront installation in the south portion. It was agreed that the major exterior facade material would be vertical wood siding. This allows the use of colour as a major design statement. The elements of the facade design build on the historic character of the downtown without replicating anything in particular. They also invoke the traditional facade design elements in contemporary materials - bulkhead panels below the aluminum storefront, recessed entry, sign band above the windows, vertical pilaster elements to generate the scale of narrow building fronts, and an articulated band along the top to suggest the traditional building cornice.

The colours of the building as depicted in the sketch are suggested only. After construction in the fall of 1996 or spring 1997, there will be a series of test colours to choose the best combination.

On main street, signs are very important. The sign concept for this project ensures that the building will be easily identified from a distance, and be informative up close. In addition to the signs shown on the sketch, there will be a projecting sign for long-distance visibility.

Restoration of the F.E. Algar Building

History

This building was constructed in 1908 and is a fine example of the one storey Early Commercial Style. Prior to restoration in 1996, it was completely intact and original. There had been very few modifications over the years. F.E. Algar established a hardware and supplies business when the Town began in the early 1890's and operated from another location prior to constructing this building.

The construction is solid brick walls with wood storefront windows and doors. Because the building is on a corner, there are two storefronts and a lot of exposed brick walls. Given the age of the building and the importance of the original owner, the building has become a local landmark.

At some more recent date, the brick on the entire building was painted a light green colour. This paint remained on the building until 1996, and had been covered with another coat of red paint prior to restoration. There was no technical reason for the painting of the brick, since it is in good condition. Over time, the paint finishes have all deteriorated and peeled.

Evolution of the Design Concept

Prior to the beginning of the Main Street Project in 1995, the owners had applied for provincial designation of the building. With the assistance of the Alberta Historical Resources Foundation, the roof was replaced and the metal cornice repaired in 1994. The owners agreed to let the Main Street Project complete the restoration. There was no design choice other than full restoration since the building was in such good historic condition and considering its importance as a local historical building landmark.

After roof replacement and cornice repairs, the next step was to repair the brick. The brick itself was in good condition, but the mortar joints had deteriorated considerably. In the summer of 1996, the entire building was repointed. In addition, the wood windows and doors were stripped of their many layers of paint, repaired and repainted. Prior to stripping, the layers of historic colours were recorded. This is done in several places on the building by creating 'craters' with sandpaper. Each layer of paint can then be identified.

New colours for the buildng were chosen in consultation with the owner. Although the historic colours were known, new compatible colours were chosen. We chose a combination of colours from historic Stephen's Colour Charts, which were commonly used at the time. The final colour scheme appears to be a little more articulated than original, when the colour schemes were fairly plain by today's standards. Colour arrangements have been chosen to hightlight and bring attention to the architectural features.

Sign concepts have been chosen to ensure good visibility of the business and an addition building sign has been added to the upper metal cornice. Although this is not original, it does not alter the original building features and assists with the interpretation.

Restoration of The Sweet Building

History

Don Sweet erected this building on Chipman Avenue in the mid 1930's. It is in the Moderne Style, which is related to the international style, popular in Europe in the 1920's (Bauhaus). It is also related to the Art Deco style from this time period. Horizontal 'speed' lines, curved walls and relatively smooth stucco finishes distinguish this style. This building might be considred a little ahead of its time, since the Moderne Style didn't really catch on in Alberta until after WW2.

The building was constructed entirely from brick. it appears that the front of the building was stuccoed from the beginning. Eventually (later than 1967) the stucco was covered with metal siding. This is the finish that was in place when restoration began in the summer of 1996.

Evolution of the Design Concept

Because the original building finishes were in place, concealed beneath the metal siding, full restoration was determined to be the most appropriate design solution. The first step was to remove the metal siding. This revealed that although the original stucco was in place, it was in fact badly damaged by the siding fasteners. The stucco had to be recoated.

In addition to the stucco, the upper wood windows were also badly deteriorated. The sills were rotted and had allowed the penetration of water over a long period of time. This water had damaged the stucco and the brick supporting wall. The owners agreed to have these windows replaced with new wood windows which match the originals. The brick was repaired. The original lower storefront windows had aluminum cladding on the exterior, and are in good condition.

After the siding was removed, the upper windows replaced and the brick repaired, new stucco was reapplied over the entire facade. Great care was taken to replicate the original finish texture. The owners opted to modify the colour from the original white to a light yellow.

A new business opened in the building in July 1996, "Shoe Shack". New signs were created for the business as part of the Main Street Project. They were constructed by Hi-Rise Signs in Edmonton. The design of the signs is intended to reflect the Moderne character of the building and to bring attention to this building along Chipman Avenue. A combination of fascia sign and projecting sign were used to achieve the required visibility. In addition, a building sign, naming the building and the date of construction was installed at the top of the building. Like the F.E. Algar Building, this will assist passersby to interpret the work of the Main Street Project more effectively.