The McLeod Block
10134 100th Street
Architect: John K. Dow of Spokane, WA.
Constructed: 1912-15
Designation: Municipal & Provincial Historic Resource
Kenneth Archibald McLeod had come to Edmonton in 1881. His trek was by way of Winnipeg. It wasn’t horse or train that had carried him there, however — McLeod walked. Spending ninety-three days largely alone in the sparsely inhabited North-West Territories, the twenty-three year old man made “the entire route at the side of a Red River cart on which his processions were loaded.” A rumour that the transcontinental railway would run through the area is what pushed him to make the trek. “When he reached the frontier village of 400 population [on November 3rd] he only had thirty-five cents.”
By 1912 McLeod was one of Edmonton’s most recognized names. The man had served as a two time town council member, was on Edmonton’s first city council, had built a “good contracting business,” and was well respected as a public school trustee. An active businessman, construction leader, and real-estate trader, it came as no surprise to most when, on June 25th, he announced his intentions to construct Edmonton’s tallest building. His “mammoth block” at Rice Street and McDougall Avenue would be fitting for a mammoth legacy.
McLeod wanted it to be the best in every respect. “It will be built on absolutely the latest designs in fireproof construction,” the Edmonton Bulletin said. “It will consist of a steel frame, encased in concrete. The building will be well equipped with three elevators of the most up-to-date pattern that can be obtained… There will be practically no timber in the entire construction, even the window frames will be of metal. The heating will be by high pressure steam, with overhead distribution.”
“In connection with this building Mr. McLeod has traveled considerably, visiting a number of large cities and taking the advice of experts on the latest methods of building construction.” The former alderman’s travels drew him to Spokane, where the work of one architect caught his eye: John Kennedy Dow’s Paulsen Building. So wowed was McLeod by the Riverside Avenue address, he reached out and commissioned a near identical structure. Dow happily obliged. Olsen & Johnston Contractors, those who built the Paulsen Building, were also brought on.
Dow’s design was based in the Sullivanesque form of the Chicago School. As A Guide to Canadian Architectural Styles notes, the style was derived “from new techniques in commercial construction as [it] was developed in large urban centres such as Chicago at the end of the nineteenth century. The most striking visual characteristic of these multi-storey buildings is the grid-like organization of windows and wall surfaces.” The elevations of buildings were “usually divided into three distinct zones, with a base devoted to large glass display windows, an intermediate section consisting of the bulk of the floors, and an attic section that is often capped by a bold cornice.”
McLeod’s building opened to tenants in the waning months of 1914, though it was only officially completed early the following year. Rising thirty-five meters above the sidewalk, the structure stood seven meters taller than its nearest competitor, the Tegler Building. It cost the former alderman $600,000 to complete. Its central location, near to the “downtown post office, land titles office, courthouse and city hall attracted doctors lawyers, insurance and grain agents, and many other prominent tenants” — a notable early occupant was the law firm of Alexander Cameron Rutherford, former premier. A droop in Edmonton’s economy saw to it that the building wasn’t fully occupied until the late-1920s.
Yet, as the decades whittled away, so did the McLeod’s prominence. In 1929 Mr. McLeod divested himself of his building to go into retirement — he passed on July 27th, 1940. 1953 saw the tower lose its coveted title as Edmonton’s tallest building with the completion of the Hotel MacDonald Annex and a slew of new office towers in the 1960s saw what relevance it had as a high-class office building rendered negligible. Eventually going through the hands of three owners that decade, the tower was finally purchased by Oxford Development. They applied for a demolition permit in 1980.
“In Oxford’s eyes,” wrote Edmonton Journal columnist Olive Elliott, “the McLeod represents inefficiency, which makes it reasonably safe to assume that there isn’t much point in trying to appeal to the company to spare the McLeod and its little neighbour [the Canada Permanent Building].” The ball was in the City’s court, but they had no options. “The planning department has until [February 19th, 1980] to grant or refuse a permit to demolish the buildings. There isn’t much the department can do — other than delay granting the permit until Feb. 19 — since it doesn’t have the right to refuse a permit just because the threatened buildings have historic merit.”
In truth, there was little merit to refusing the permit outside of historical considerations. Regardless, the Planning Department did what they couldn’t and cited that as their reason. They allowed the permit to be terminated on February 19th, thereby refusing Oxford’s plans. City officials had attempted to gain leverage with the developers by offering concessions elsewhere in exchange for preservation, but the company hadn’t budged. So, with the ball returned to Oxford, the City made an appeal to the Province. They wanted the McLeod designated a Provincial Historic Resource.
Discussions went back and forth for months. “Battle lines” were drawn. Gerry Wright, Society for the Preservation of Architectural Resources in Edmonton’s president, warned of a legal challenge. Oxford continued playing hard ball. But, a compromise was reached: to save it, the Province would purchase the McLeod and neighbouring Canada Permanent Buildings for $4,800,000.
After their purchase, the McLeod sat without much purpose. The Province struggled to find a use for it and for a period it served as artist studios. Doing something with the former alderman’s building took vision and that vision came from another former alderman. Gene Dub, architect of Edmonton’s City Hall, stepped up to the plate and purchased the McLeod outright in 1995. Along with him came an overdue Provincial Historic Resource designation.
Dub’s plan to refurbish the building into an eighty-eight apartment suite complex won favour with City Council. As work began in 2001, a Municipal Historic Resource designation was also granted and the City set aside $548,000 for its restoration. Councillor Larry Langley would say the choice to give such a large sum was easy: “It’s time to make Cinderella into the princess she deserves to be.” As Journal columnist Paula Simons wrote, “the task demanded a major personal financial investment from Dub, and he says it will be 20 years, if ever, till he makes back what he spent.” But that was of little concern — his objective was to save an icon.
Every oak door was individually restored and their “McL” monogramed knobs polished. A “disintegrated” exterior column was replicated. Lustrous marble walls, hiding under formica paneling, were revealed. Terrazzo floors laying under linoleum were patched and waxed. Damaged terracotta cladding was sent out of country to be replaced or refurbished.
Work finished in 2004. “For Edmonton, it’s a double triumph, the restoration of an architectural legacy, and a chance to stoke downtown revitalization,” Simons closed. “In Gene Dub, Kenny McLeod found the right person to bring his dream back to life. How sweet an irony it would be, if almost a century on, McLeod’s vision helped give our city’s core back its heart, its soul, and its grove.”
Image Gallery:
Sources:
“Mammoth Block For Site At Corner Of McDougall And Rice,” Edmonton Bulletin, June 25, 1912.
“Contract for McLeod Building,” Edmonton Bulletin, November 16, 1912.
“McLeod Block Nearing Completion,” Edmonton Bulletin, September 23, 1914.
“K.A. McLeod Dies at Coast,” Edmonton Journal, July 29, 1940.
Janet Vlieg, “Battle Lines Take Shape for Battle Over Demolition,” Edmonton Journal, January 19, 1980.
Olive Elliott, “Fate of Historic Buildings in Council’s Hands,” Edmonton Journal, January 22, 1980.
Olive Elliott, “Politicians, Once Riled, Will Show Their Claws,” Edmonton Journal, February 14, 1980.
Dawna Freeman, “Tenants Rejoice at Building’s Reprieve,” Edmonton Journal, February 29, 1980.
Olive Elliott, “City Can’t be a Fairy Godmother All The Time,” Edmonton Journal, June 23, 1981.
Vicky Hall, “History Meets the Future,” Edmonton Journal, January 25, 2001.
“Developer Gets $548,000 to Restore McLeod Tower,” Edmonton Journal, January 31, 2001.
Paula Simons “McLeod Building a Monument to Men’s Magnificent Obsession,” Edmonton Journal, April 29, 2003.
Jac MacDonald, Historic Edmonton: An Architectural and Pictorial Guide (Edmonton: Lone Tree Publishing, 1987), 51.
Leslie Maitland, Jacqueline Hucker, Shannon Rickets, A Guide to Canadian Architectural Styles (Peterborough, Ontario: Broadview Press, 1993), 125.
Ken Tingley, Building A Legacy: Edmonton’s Architectural Heritage (Edmonton: City of Edmonton, 2012), 76.
Dorothy Field, Historical Walking Tours of Downtown Edmonton: Explore Our Past (City of Edmonton Sustainable Development and Alberta Culture and Tourism: Edmonton, AB, 2015), 51.
