INNISFAIL - Council has bent to an urgent request by the Innisfail & District Historical Society for funding to fix the deteriorating roof of the 129-year-old historical Sinclair House.
And while council is giving the society $8,050 for the needed work to fix the roof and add eavestroughs, members noted it's the second time the town has provided funding and made it clear the society should now go to Red Deer County for financial assistance, as well as exploring other avenues of funding.
Last December, the town gave the society $10,000 once the Sinclair House was successfully moved to the Innisfail & District Historical Village. The two-storey log house was the pioneer home of David and Isabella (Bella) Sinclair, and is considered a vital historical artifact for Innisfail and the region. It is believed Bella, as she was known throughout the region, was the first Caucasian female settler in Central Alberta.
"If you look at the village and walk through it, most of it is rural in a lot of ways. A lot of people make donations so it will be preserved for future generations and their heritage, so I think they have an excellent case, as long as it's done in kind of coordination so we don't piecemeal it," said Coun. Gavin Bates at council's April 23 regular meeting.
During the meeting society board members Anna Lenters and Lawrence Gould outlined the society's current funding challenges to council, noting available funds for the Sinclair House restoration project were depleted during last year's first phase, which originally included monies to move the structure into the historical village and then fix the roof. However, fixing the roof, which has been covered with a tarp since 2016, has now been assigned to the project's second phase, which has a total cost of about $25,850. The planned work includes several other improvements, including repairing and restoring doors and windows.
"To preserve the house we have to fix the roof first. That is the primary thing that we have to do," said Gould following the council presentation. "The next is to put some windows in and doors of course, and the floor inside is deteriorating. It's rotted in some places."
Council was told the society's original first phase budget of $40,000 ballooned to $70,000 due to unforeseen issues, including a $25,000 cost to remove asbestos. The cost of transporting the Sinclair House, which was hauled 13 kilometres last December from the Thomson acreage west of town to the historical village, was about $30,000. That cost was paid by John Thomson, whose family donated the two-storey log structure, which had been sitting vacant and deteriorating on the family farm since the 1980s.
"They didn't do their homework as much as they could have. This thing (project) evolved and it cost a lot more than they expected and council said, 'look, we will put in $10,000' but basically they were supposed to be on their own after that," said Mayor Jim Romane, noting the original donation the town gave last year. "What were we going to say -- let the house sit there and rot now? We got to get a (good) roof on it. They have to get it on and weatherproofed."
Following council's decision last week Lenters said the society was grateful for the town's new $8,050 donation. She said the society will now be able to fix the roof as soon as possible.
"We are now on the right path to do that," she said, adding the society will now prepare a formal presentation to take to Red Deer County council for additional financial assistance. Lenters added the society will also look into the province's Community Facility Enhancement Program for a grant and will investigate other funding opportunities with the Alberta Museums Association.
If any citizen or organization wants to help the fundraising drive to restore the Sinclair home, give Gould a call at 403-227-1883 or Lenters at 403-865-3736.
