It's been a long and arduous journey to upgrade the 104-year old Merchants Hotel in Winnipeg’s North End, but the day has finally come.
Merchants Corner re-opened Saturday. The newly built education, housing and community hub revitalizes what was once a flashpoint of community frustration and a symbol of decline into a beacon of hope.
The space now features 30 affordable student housing units, an educational arm showcasing the University of Winnipeg Department of Urban and Inner-City Studies, The Community Education DevelopmentAssociation(CEDA) and a culinary program run by R.B. Russell.
“One of the biggest gaps has been the change from secondary to post-secondary, so you graduate high school in the North end and have to travel all the way to somewhere else to go to post-secondary or university,” said Jordan Bighorn, Program Manager at CEDA. “It’s extremely important it’s all under one roof.”
The space will also include a social enterprise cafe and space for community based programs and events in the coming months, including Meet Me at the Bell Tower group, organized by Michael Champagne and others, on Friday and Saturday evenings.
The project has taken seven years to come to fruition. Just last year during renovations, a small fire believed to be arson, caused damage and set the construction back.
“It’s not lost on me that perhaps years ago in that space where the old Merchants Hotel was, that there was probably some very dark things happening in that space. So I bear that to mind sometimes and feel so blessed that I can do different kinds of work in that space, which is trying to help students get to graduation,” said Bighorn.
The management company behind the building is striving to make it a beacon for community and cultural events where groups can get together for social gatherings.
Tours of the newly renovated space are taking place Saturday and Sunday.
