Future of burned Wetaskiwin community hub uncertain: owner

A piece of Wetaskiwin's history has been reduced to rubble. Miriam Valdes-Carletti talks to residents after the Memorial Arts Centre was destroyed by a fire.

The future of a community hub in Wetaskiwin is uncertain following a fire that destroyed the near 80-year-old structure over the weekend.

Owner Shawn Tah said they were “confused and shocked” when Mounties called Sunday morning bearing bad news.

“I thought maybe a small fire or something had erupted somewhere in the kitchen,” said Tah. “The officer told me the building was down into the ground.”

Tah said they were renovating the main floor of the building to accommodate a daycare and that the basement would serve as a community hub with a restaurant and bar.

Built in 1947, the Memorial Arts Centre served as a gathering and events space that hosted hundreds of weddings, fundraisers, and even housed the legion for a while.

Tah purchased the building in 2024.

“It was a piece of history for the town, and when we purchased it, we were aware of that,” Tah said. “We were hoping to add to it.”

Now that the building has been reduced to rubble, Tah said he is sitting tight while they wait for insurance.

“There are a lot of things to the equation that we will need to figure out before we can understand how we want to rebuild it.”

Tah also said they are concerned about their revenue stream, or lack there of, while they continue to make bank payments on the building.

Fire services responded to the area around 8:15 p.m. Saturday after receiving reports of smoke coming from the building.

The fire was extinguished by 11:30 a.m. Sunday, but crews responded to a couple of additional calls due to rekindling.

Wetaskiwin Fire Services said they are investigating the cause of the fire.

‘All we’ve got now is just the memories’

Wetaskiwin resident Dan Anderson married his wife at the Memorial Arts Centre. His three children also got married there.

“You had to book a year out before if you wanted your certain date, that’s how big of a place it was at the time,” Anderson told CTV News Edmonton. “We’re going to miss it … All we’ve got now is just the memories.”

The building is one of several that have been lost in recent years due to fire, including the Druid Hotel and a church.

“You can’t replace history. You can’t replace the atmosphere, the ambiance that we had in all those beautiful buildings,” said Mayor Joe Branco. “I think a lot of our community residents will come together to reminisce about the good old days.”

With files from CTV News Edmonton’s Miriam Valdes-Carletti