As warmer temperatures arrive in southern Alberta, the reconstruction of the new $70.6-million Lethbridge & District Exhibition Agri-food Hub and Trade Centre is heating up.
Earlier this month, trees were removed from the grounds in preparation for Phase 1 of construction, which is set to begin with an official sod turning ceremony on March 31. Bill Scales, project director at Ward Bros. Construction Ltd. says it closed the first tender package earlier this week which has given the approval to start earthwork.
“We are basically ready to start at the beginning of April, with site clearing, building demolition, stripping and filling the site. There is a massive amount of backfill to go in the site as it’s too low. That process will take probably four to six weeks. We will be tendering the piling in April, which will allow that work to start on site around mid-May. Piling will be followed by the footings and foundations, then come September we will start the structure and carry on from there.”
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At the beginning of March, 211 trees were cut down, most of the trees removed have been in the ground for over 80 years. The majority of the trees were ready to be removed due to disease or the end-of-life cycle. For each tree removed, a new tree will be planted in the landscaping plan.
Mike Warkentin, Lethbridge and District Exhibition Park Chief Operating Officer says the trees removed won’t be going to waste. A portion of the trees will be recycled and used as furniture pieces in the building, while others will be cultivated and replanted. The balance will be donated as firewood for fundraising by local charities.
“We’re going to actually take cuttings from some of the oldest growth trees on site, cultivate them and replant them into the landscaping plan, which is something I didn’t realize you could do, which is fantastic because it actually gets to maintain these old growth trees that are on site into the future design.”
The new Agri-food and Trade Centre will be over 266,000 square feet. The north, south and main pavilions will be demolished in the redevelopment process, but the northwest building will be used as a shop and storage. Heritage Hall will not be touched and is set to remain a rental facility.
Parkside Dr. will not be closed during the construction process, with construction traffic exiting towards the south on Parkside Dr. to 43 St., helping minimize the impact on surrounding neighbourhoods.
The redevelopment project is expected to create roughly 300 to 400 jobs throughout the two-year process. Blair Grier, project manager at Lethbridge & District Exhibition says the new facility will be using energy efficient materials such as LED lighting and a new heat exchange system.
“We are using a hydronic heating system rather than just a straight air-to-air system, so where you have natural gas burners in the air handling units, instead we just have a central high efficiency condensing boiler and that will provide hot water and then the cooling towers will provide chilled water to all the air handling units.”
The building will feature huge glass facades, 26-foot high vaulted lobby ceilings and 30-foot high trade halls. In the north end of the trade halls, a 70,000 pound load capacity will be designed to withstand gear and speaker systems that can hang from the roof allowing for future concerts and shows to take place.
Warkentin says the overall goal of the redevelopment is to drive significant economic development to Lethbridge. Whether this means bringing in more business to the community, more jobs or more home sales, he says the list is endless.
“Lethbridge obviously has a tremendous agricultural industry, connect that with Canada’s premier food quarter that extends to Taber, it’s got every element it needs to be an investment attraction hub with the exception of that showcase piece. We anticipate being that we hope to bring a lot of eyes to the region and as well a lot of investment dollars.”
Over the construction process, Lethbridge & District Exhibition will work closely with Ward Bros. Construction Ltd. to help maintain space for current events taking place at and to ensure they will not be interrupted. The completion of the building is anticipated to be in late December of 2022, with an official opening in early 2023.
