What's happening now
We appreciate the tremendous interest Albertans have in the future of the Glenora site. Albertans submitted over 500 comments through the online opportunity that was open from November 2017 to July 2019.
We have reviewed all the comments received and have summarized the engagement in “What We Heard”.
Today the Glenora building may look quiet outside, but inside staff are busy cataloguing and moving tens of thousands of artifacts. This work is expected to be complete in 2020.
The Glenora building will continue to be maintained while still in use and no decision has been made on the future use of the site.
Timeline
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Open
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Results under review
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Completed
Who is listening
Ministry of Infrastructure
Building facts
The Glenora building is not currently registered as a Provincial Historical Resource, but the Government House, Carriage House and the lands associated on site are.
- The Glenora building is about 24,100 square metres.
- Replacement value of the Glenora building is about $156 million, as of 2016.
Building operating costs
- Annual operating costs are approximately $2 million including cooling, heating, electricity and water.
Building repair and maintenance costs
Keeping the Glenora building operational will result in its systems needing to be replaced and maintained. As of 2016:
- The total cost of deferred maintenance work required is approximately $50 million.
- Of that $50 million, the cost of individual building components due for replacement within the next 5 years is estimated at $25 million. This includes architectural, building envelope, electrical and mechanical components.
History of the building
The Provincial Museum and Archives of Alberta was built in 1965 in Edmonton’s Glenora neighbourhood. It opened to the public in 1967 as Alberta celebrated Canada’s Centennial of Confederation. The museum and archives were separated in 2003 when the Provincial Archives of Alberta moved to its own building.
The museum added the word “royal” to its name in 2005 when Queen Elizabeth II visited Alberta to mark the province's 100th anniversary of entry into Confederation. During her visit, the Queen re-designated the Provincial Museum and Archives of Alberta as the Royal Alberta Museum.
The Glenora site museum closed its doors to the public in December 2015. On October 3, 2018, the new world-class $375.5 million Royal Alberta Museum in downtown Edmonton opened its doors, welcoming more than 41,000 visitors during the first six days featuring free admission.