Stretch of Princess Street closed due to unsafe condition of building, city says
Princess Street between Pacific and Ross avenues closed to traffic until further notice: City of Winnipeg
A busy section of road in the city's Exchange District will be closed until further notice, says the City of Winnipeg, because a nearby building is in unsafe condition.
Princess Street between Pacific and Ross avenues is completely blocked to traffic while crews assess the condition of the building at 216 Princess St. and look for ways to fix it.
The building, called the Scott Memorial Orange Hall, is dealing with some foundational issues, which is fairly common when buildings reach a certain age, according to Gordon Goldsborough, president of the Manitoba Historical Society.
"If you look at the outside of it, you can see that it's suffering some damage," Goldsborough said. "There are some large cracks that have appeared on it... in the last few weeks.
"Usually, it's a result of the building moving," he said, adding that the cracks are on the north and west sides of the building.
The building received historical designation in 2017. Back in the day it was called the Grand Orange Lodge of Manitoba because it housed a fraternal organization called the Orange Order, he said.
"Over 100 years ago [the fraternity] was very active, and there were chapters of it all over Manitoba, all of whom reported to the main lodge, that was the one in Winnipeg," Goldsborough said.
Over the years, the ground floor had been used for an antique shop, but Goldsborough is unsure of what the building's top floors were used for.
Most recently, the building was slated to be renovated into condominiums, he said.
While the lane will be closed to traffic, pedestrians will still be allowed on the east sidewalk of Princess Street, the city says.
Princess St. between Pacific Ave. and Ross Ave. is closed until further notice due to the unsafe condition of an area building. Crews will assess the building’s condition & review options for remediation. Motorists advised to allow additional travel time & use alternate routes.
—@cityofwinnipegDrivers who use the route should schedule extra travel time and find other ways to get to their destinations.
For Transit re-route and schedule information, people can call follow @transitalerts on Twitter, or contact 311.
People can get updates on lane closures through an interactive map on the city's website.