REDEVELOPMENT of the Grain Elevator Site in Warren Manitoba?

The town of Warren Manitoba is home to one of the last few standing symbols of Western Canada, a silent giant that used to be an important step in the grain trading process and which is now an empty cathedral. The iconic grain elevator can be seen from miles away and marks Warren as a special place, a place that remembers when the west was settled and developed for agricultural production, a place that holds on to the idea that farmers and their institutions remain and have always been the backbone of Canada’s development as a nation. Warren is marked, as long as the elevator stands, as a place that doesn’t forget and this sentinel guards against reckless abandon in the name of “progress” on a prairie where almost 6000 once dominated and now only a small handful remain.

Warren's Grain Elevator

Grain Elevator in Warren

What will Warren do to make the most of the “potential” this icon once held and still represents? How will it use the elevator to mark itself as a one-of-a-kind community? Will it become a museum to grain, a monument to farmers, or an interpretive centre of some kind? Or will it simply stand and slowly decay?

For anyone making a trip across Canada, one of the most powerful memories taken away is the Prairie and what could be a more sensory prairie experience than stepping into an aging country elevator and savoring echoes from the past? Warren has a unique opportunity here.

Repairs to Roof are now an URGENT Matter

On October  21st, Mr. Lindsay Kolt, inspector for the Department of Culture, Heritage & Tourism felt  that emergency measures for the roof and also other repairs were urgent and that these repairs were essential to the continued used of the Elevator, both as a scale, and as a facility for Public (tourism) use. The Warren Elevator requires new shingles and other repairs in 2010 and it is estimated that this will cost at least $30,000.

The West Interlake Trading Company (a nonprofit organization which spurred the initiative to rescue the elevator in the first place, and which continues to care for the future of the Elevator) is currently in the process of applying for a grant through “Community Places” however, this grant would potentially cover less than 1/2 of the required amount. Part of the condition for obtaining this funding is that the balance of the finances be obtained elsewhere. The RM of Woodlands has also been approached for its help because it has supported the continued use of the Elevator scale by local farmers. The West Interlake Trading Company has these and other fundraising initiatives in the works and it is asking the community for its help.

In previous years, the West Interlake Trading Company had been able to fund-raise by running events in conjunction with the Prairie Dog Central Railway (and this had worked well), however 2009 presented some unexpected challenges. PDC had rail cars stored on the tracks in between Grosse Isle and Warren, and the train did not start coming to Warren until August. As well, other customary fundraising activities, held in conjunction with the train were just not there.

PATH – As of Feb. 10, 2010 West Interlake Trading Company has Renewed its Vision to Move Forward!

The West Interlake Trading Company’s vision for the future is one of becoming a successful and economically sustainable nonprofit enterprise. This intended vision includes a series of goals. 

1. To continue to maintain and enhance a local historic icon called “The Warren Grain Elevator” developing it and the surrounding site for a diverse variety of uses which will uphold and promote a vibrant and economically strong community with healthy, thriving people living in it. The Grain Elevator Site is at the heart of the community and is currently used as a community meeting place directly adjacent to the Warren & District Lions Park Complex. The grounds are available for recreational purposes to the whole community and are used frequently when residents go for walks etc. The overall vision for the Site is that it will continue to be a recreational space where the community will gather and that it will be maintained as a focal point for the programming of year-round activities within and around the community.
2. The Grain Elevator will continue to be an “attraction” and will be developed as an Interpretive Centre/Museum with an Agricultural theme. It will continue to be an educational facility teaching the history of grain and its role in the settling and development of the prairies and of Canada as a nation. Part of this will be the interpretation of grain elevator functioning and an explanation of the mechanical aspect.
3. The Grain Elevator Site will be a centre for programming community recreation and arts activities which will take place community wide, utilizing venues throughout the RM. These activities are currently being programmed out of the LUD office space.
4. The Grain Elevator Site will continue to include and maximize a Country Market retail space where a cooperative of local and Manitoban artists, artisans, crafters and farmers will market their wares. This will empower the local people and economy and also provide a source of income for the operation.
5. The Grain Elevator Site will become an information gateway where tourists will access programs (tours, packaged experiences) and information primarily promoting attractions in the West Interlake area. WITC continues to design and delivers tour packages and experiences that match the needs and interests of the tourist. It also continues to increase the level of activity within the community that attracts visitors from Winnipeg.

Dave Cain & Ian Goodall-George drew up the PATH as we brainstormed.