Project continues to upgrade old Summerside armoury
Posted by: Groundspeak Premium Member T0SHEA
N 46° 23.569 W 063° 47.450
20T E 439198 N 5137997
The Summerside armoury, AKA the PIER Armoury, was not quite a centenarian when it was given heritage status by the City of Summerside on December 4th of 2007.
Waymark Code: WMZCT8
Location: Prince Edward Island, Canada
Date Posted: 10/20/2018
Published By:Groundspeak Premium Member Alfouine
Views: 2

PEIR is the acronym for the Prince Edward Island Regiment, the regiment which last used the PIER Armoury in 1992, the year in which it was taken out of military service. Built in 1911-12, the small armoury was built, for reasons unknown, without a drill hall. This caused considerable consternation in the city as it had lost its drill hall, not to mention about 154 other buildings, to the great fire of 1906. Nevertheless the armoury was used by various regiments from its formal opening on June 22, 1912 to 1992, a span of 80 years.

In 1996 the armoury was sold to the City of Summerside which had offices in the building until 2003. Today the building hosts the International Fox Museum and Hall of Fame as well as Gallery 33, a seasonal art gallery. Previously housed in the the historic Holman Homestead, the Fox Museum moved into the armoury in 2005.

By 2017 the building was becoming in need of a bit of a face lift, as well as interior renovation to make better use of the space within. The Summerside Journal Pioneer published a news article on the renovation, due to begin in early 2018.
Project continues to upgrade
old Summerside armoury
Millicent McKay | Dec 20, 2017
SUMMERSIDE – As a community staple, steeped in history, Lori Ellis can’t wait to see the new mix with the old, inside the International Fox Museum and Hall of Fame.

The 106-year-old building will undergo major renovations in the new year, transforming the former armoury into an interactive and more accessible learning-based community space...

...Currently, Ellis and staff at Wyatt Heritage Properties are in an organizational stage, working to arrange funding and partners in the project...

...In September, Summerside City Council approved $10,000 funding to hire a third party to conduct a study and report on the scope of work for the project. Their job was to double-check the work Culture Summerside had already put into the project.

Ellis and Culture Summerside staff have met with City Council a number of times to update the process. Currently they do not have a set value for the renovation. Once funding partners are in place, the cost will be more certain, said Ellis...

...Ellis says the renovations will allow for better use of the various levels of the building, with the Fox Museum moving to the top floor.

“It will have the potential to showcase fuller profiles in the city’s history or say if an organization wanted to profile something there will also be that opportunity. We also want to incorporate items from other communities for displays to broaden the understanding of the community and other places in Canada or the world.”

“We don’t plan to use text panels in the exhibits which will allow us to constantly rotate exhibits by using different technologies.”

It will cut cost, allow for temporary and rotating exhibits, participant interaction and a level of comfort for younger participants.

Marlene Campbell, a Culture Summerside staffer, is excited to see the old and new unite.
From the Summerside Journal Pioneer
Type of publication: Newspaper

When was the article reported?: 12/20/2017

Publication: Summerside Journal Pioneer

Article Url: [Web Link]

Is Registration Required?: no

How widespread was the article reported?: regional

News Category: Arts/Culture

Visit Instructions:
Give the date of your visit at the news location along with a description of what you learned or experienced.
Search for...
Geocaching.com Google Map
Google Maps
MapQuest
Bing Maps
Nearest Waymarks
Nearest News Article Locations
Nearest Geocaches
Create a scavenger hunt using this waymark as the center point
Recent Visits/Logs:
Date Logged Log User Rating  
stinger503 visited Project continues to upgrade old Summerside armoury 07/06/2023 stinger503 visited it
Trail Blaisers visited Project continues to upgrade old Summerside armoury 05/14/2018 Trail Blaisers visited it

View all visits/logs