By Geoff Smith (@smithco on Twitter)

Potential of Oliver Building slowly being revealed

Jan 31, 2017 | 9:32 AM

LETHBRIDGE – The sunlight of a winter day fills the second floor of a historic building, revealing a bright future that was once cloudy.

“It’s bright upstairs, here, all day long, without any lights,” says Hunter Heggie, who along with partner Brian Vandenberg is restoring the Oliver Building. The pair purchased the dilapitated two-story building on 5 St. S. from the city in June 2016 for $9,500.

Since then Heggie and Vandenberg have been busy bringing the century-old building back to a state where it can once again be occupied for residential and commercial use. The work began with the removal of asbestos, mold, and a thick layer of pigeon droppings. Now the original wood flooring has been revealed in the suites, which open into a long corridor with a skylight above. The brick walls have also been revealed.

“You never know in a building like this that’s over 100 years old what you’re going to find,” Heggie said in an interview. “We’ve found some stairwells that went to nowhere; we’ve found some stairwells that went to places. We found little rooms and backrooms that had been boarded up. We found a lot of garbage and we found a lot of old papers and different things like that, directories, phone books, things that are kind of cool just to look at.”

The architectually-distinctive Oliver Building dates back nearly 110 years. It was built by a former alderman and mayor, William Oliver. Over the years it was occupied by businesses including a Chinese restaurant, a drug store, and a music store. The upper-floor suites were once offices, occupied by professionals and even a private investigator, according to one of the old doors crews removed during the restoration process.

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The storefront space in the main floor is also being prepared for lease, and major restoration work is going on at the rear and basement.

“Virtually daily, I get a call. Not necessarily for the suites; sometimes for the commercial units. But people are definitely interested in properties downtown, and to living downtown, working downtown, that’s what people want to do,” Heggie said. Heggie expects to put more than $1 million into the building. Some of that could be recouped through the Heart of Our City Housing Incentive Program, which provides up to $30,000 per housing unit.

“They want people living downtown and I agree with it. It’s a great thing to live downtown,” Heggie said. He’s also proud he and Vandenberg likely saved the building from the wrecking ball, something for which they continue to get positive feedback from the public.

Heggie said a conservative estimate for occupancy is early 2018.

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