'Belongs to every single Albertan': Prominent Edmontonians speak out against RAM demolition

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For Senator Paula Simons, the site of the former Royal Alberta Museum (RAM) is a symbol of Alberta’s complex and noteworthy history, especially for the generations of Albertans who experienced its exhibits.

In the week since the UCP government revealed its intention to demolish the former RAM building, Simons and many other Albertans have expressed their sadness and concern with the plan. The 56-year-old facility made with Manitoba Tyndall stone should be saved and designated a heritage site, she said.

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“The building belongs to every single Albertan. It’s just a magnificent building that’s got art literally carved into the walls. I mean, what are we even doing?”

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Alberta Infrastructure announced on Aug. 1 it intends to convert the RAM site into a green space where “families can gather again.” The plan is to demolish the main building of the RAM while maintaining Government House and the Carriage House structures.

Simons said she feels the announcement was intentionally made through a news release on a Thursday afternoon before a long weekend because the province hopes it will go unnoticed.

“I just think it’s fallen off the public radar. People haven’t thought about it for a while and if, unlike me, they don’t live in the neighbourhood, it’s not front of mind for them. If you’re under 25, you’ve never even been inside it.”

Marlene Wyman, former Edmonton historian laureate and a former archivist at the RAM, also opposes the demolition. She is among many who have written letters to Postmedia to express their disappointment.

“In a young province such as ours, I don’t think we put enough value on history,” said Wyman.

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A question of cost

Alberta Infrastructure says it spends $700,000 annually to maintain the building while it sits unused.

Complications such as asbestos removal and other maintenance needs, the ministry said, would make the price of renovating or repurposing the RAM building impractically high — roughly $150 million, including $75 million in deferred maintenance costs. The cost to demolish the building is estimated between $22-$48 million.

However, that explanation doesn’t hold much water for people like Simons or Wyman.

Wyman worked in the RAM archives for 25 years and sat on the health and safety committee for the building. During her tenure, she said, the committee hired an asbestos specialist to conduct a safety survey, which found the building was safe as long as the asbestos was not disturbed or broken up — something that Wyman believes is certain to happen if the building is demolished.

A City of Edmonton web page on “Managing Asbestos in City Buildings” states that “asbestos is harmless if contained but becomes a health hazard when the fibres are disturbed and become airborne. Fibres can be released into the air when products containing asbestos break down or are disturbed by drilling, cutting, grinding, buffing, etc.”

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“Part of the reasoning that the government is using is that it’s too expensive to remove the asbestos safely,” Wyman said. “But even with the demolition, the asbestos is going to have to be removed before the demolition happens. So repurposing the building without exposing any of that asbestos would be safer than demolition.”

Historically endangered

In 2016, the National Trust of Canada put the RAM on its top-10 list of endangered spaces, citing the then-NDP government’s intention to redevelop the site into an open green space. They called the building a “stunning example of mid-century modern architecture,” and noted the building’s south facade that exhibits reproduced carvings of First Nations petroglyph designs.

“The roof of the building reportedly needs repair, but otherwise it is in excellent condition. An adaptive use of this high-quality and much-loved building is surely the more sustainable choice.”

For Simons, the building is far more than the materials used in its construction. To her, the RAM represents opportunities for Canadians to wrestle with the beauty and ugliness of our national history.

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“I think that we have a problem as we come to terms with our colonial settler past, and the racism that it embodies, where it’s just easier to erase everybody who was problematic. We should have a chance to figure out how we’re going to integrate that past into our future. That’s the purpose of a museum, more than anything.”

Alberta Infrastructure has created an online survey to let Albertans have a say in designing the new green space, though there is no option to vote against the demolition. In addition, Alberta Infrastructure says it is working closely with Indigenous communities in the planning of the site.

Wyman thinks both of these gestures are disingenuous.

“I think the consultation is the formality, especially since nowhere on it is there any kind of opportunity for input about the building, only about what we want to have done with the green space.”

Meanwhile, an online petition has been created for those who wish to save the former RAM building.

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