CN Tower (Edmonton)

The CN Tower is an 111 metres (364 ft), 26-storey office tower located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. The tower was built by the Canadian National Railway Company as Edmonton's first skyscraper, and at its completion in 1966 was the tallest building in Western Canada.[1] The CN Tower would remain Edmonton's and Western Canada's tallest building until 1971 when it was surpassed by Edmonton House.

This article is about the tower in Edmonton. For the tower in Toronto, see CN Tower.
CN Tower
Location within Edmonton
General information
StatusComplete
TypeOffice
Architectural styleInternational Style
LocationEdmonton, Alberta, Canada
Address10004 104 Avenue NW
Coordinates53°32′49″N 113°29′29″W
Construction started1964
Completed1966
Opening14 February 1966[1]
CostCA$10.5 million
($80 million in 2018 dollars[2])
OwnerStrategic Group
Height
Roof110.92 m (363.9 ft)
Technical details
Floor count26
Floor area254,000 square feet
Design and construction
ArchitectAbugov & Sunderland
Main contractorHashman Construction Ltd.

History

The building site was originally to the CNR Edmonton station which was constructed in 1905, and subsequently expanded in 1928. The CNR Station was demolished in 1953 and the area in which the expansion was constructed would become the spot the CN Tower would be constructed on in 1966.[3]

Former railway station that was demolished to make way for the tower.

Plans for the tower would be announced in 1963, with construction started in fall of 1964.[4] Allied Development Corporation of Calgary would hire Abugov & Sunderland to design, and Hashman Construction Company to build the CA$10.5-million CN Tower, which was Western Canada's tallest office tower when completed in October 1966.[4] The opening ceremonies for the tower were attended by Lieutenant Governor of Alberta Grant MacEwan and Premier Ernest Manning.[4]

The CN Tower exemplified the modern International Style of architecture and is an early example of the tower-podium design.[5] The CN Tower was purchased by the Calgary-based Strategic Group as part of a distress sale,[5] and the last remaining Canadian National Railway employees moved out of the building in 2008.[6] The Canadian National Railway logo is still found over the main entrance and on the top of the building. Canadian National sought to develop a second tower in Edmonton as part of a larger downtown redevelopment program, which would have been 150.14 metres (492.6 ft), 42-storey office tower in 1969, however the project was subsequently cancelled.[7]

Built to overlook the old Canadian National rail yard, the building's basement once housed Edmonton's main passenger railway station, until the Canadian National railway tracks leading to Downtown Edmonton were removed in 1998.[8][9] Since then, passenger trains serving Edmonton have stopped at the Edmonton railway station situated near the former Edmonton City Centre Airport which ceased operations in 2013.

The building suffered structural damage to the exterior on 18 July 2009, during a severe thunderstorm. Two vehicles were crushed by falling debris at the base of the building.[10]

See also

References
  1. "CN Tower — 1966". Capital Modern Edmonton. 2011. Retrieved 31 May 2012.
  2. Canadian inflation numbers based on Statistics Canada tables 18-10-0005-01 (formerly CANSIM 326-0021) "Consumer Price Index, annual average, not seasonally adjusted". Statistics Canada. 15 November 2020. Retrieved 15 November 2020. and 18-10-0004-13 "Consumer Price Index by product group, monthly, percentage change, not seasonally adjusted, Canada, provinces, Whitehorse, Yellowknife and Iqaluit". Statistics Canada. Retrieved 15 November 2020.
  3. "Edmonton CNR Railway Stations (104 Ave at 100 Street and 101 Street)". Lost Edmonton. Retrieved 30 August 2017.
  4. "Edmonton's CN Tower Complete". Calgary Herald. 31 October 1966. p. 22. Retrieved 21 July 2020.
  5. Kerr, Kathy (14 August 2018). "Canada's other CN Tower stands tall in Edmonton". Real Estate News Exchange. Edmonton. Retrieved 21 July 2020.
  6. "CN vacates downtown Edmonton's landmark CN Tower". CAW National Council 4000. 12 May 2008. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  7. CN Tower II at Emporis. Retrieved 21 July 2020.
  8. Herzog, Lawrence (16 November 2011). "The Lost Series: Edmonton's Lost Railways". Edmonton Heritage Council. Archived from the original on 14 May 2012. Retrieved 31 May 2012.
  9. Carefoot, Stacey (1 April 2008). "Canadian National Railway Office – Walker Office". Kaisan Architecture. Archived from the original on 1 June 2012. Retrieved 31 May 2012.
  10. Drake, Laura; Kehler, Therese (19 July 2009). "Violent storm damages Edmonton's CN Tower". The Vancouver Sun. Retrieved 31 May 2012.
Preceded by
Hotel Macdonald Annex		 Tallest building in Edmonton
1966–1971
364ft		 Succeeded by
AGT Tower
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