Enoch Sales Residence Fire Update
Historic home demolished following tragic fire
Calgary Municipal Land Corporation (CMLC) – Following the fire this past weekend that overwhelmed the Enoch Sales Residence – the historic house has been demolished due to the extent of damage inflicted by the fire. While this tragic event has taken one of Calgary’s historic assets, it has been confirmed that no individuals were injured in the fire.
“We are very grateful to the Calgary Fire Department and City of Calgary building inspectors for their efforts to contain the fire," says Michael Brown, president and CEO of CMLC. “Our biggest concern upon hearing of the fire was risk of injury to anyone involved and the safety of the firefighters, so we were relieved nobody was harmed.”
CMLC worked in coordination with the Calgary Fire Department on Saturday and once the fire was extinguished, demolition began quickly following to mitigate safety risks due to the volume of water within the building and freezing temperatures. The remains of the house will be removed from the site once appropriate remediation efforts are completed and in the interim, fencing now surrounds the perimeter to enclose the below grade level of the home while final site clean-up is coordinated.
While under CMLC’s ownership and care, the Enoch Sales Residence was reviewed through weekly site inspections by CMLC’s development team as well part of daily community maintenance protocols to ensure there were no breached entry points into the house via windows or doors, manage clean-up of any debris or garbage around the site and general maintenance – the most recent inspection to the house was conducted by CMLC on Thursday January 31, 2019 and found no concerns on site.
“The tragedy of this fire is that we’ve lost the opportunity to realize a new future for the home, and while plans weren’t definitive at the time, CMLC has been diligent in our care of the home for the past two years to help protect it against further deterioration," adds Brown. “Over the past ten years in East Village, we’ve invested significantly in the preservation and restoration of four heritage buildings, so we fully understand their value to a community. Saturday’s fire is a loss for us all.”
Estimates for the $3 million restoration and relocation of Enoch Sales Residence were completed in 2015 by CMLC prior to acquiring the home and land however, required approvals and funding were not in place to proceed at the time of the fire.
Photo: Andrew Guilbert
