Work is going on six days a week to tear down the troublesome abandoned Ogden Legion building, paving the way for a potential new life for the beleaguered site.
A city memo obtained by LWC acknowledged the property has been a long-standing problem, and a “hotspot for crime and disorder,” and it was now taking action.
“To that end, The City is demolishing the privately-owned building in accordance with Alberta’s Municipal Government Act, which authorizes municipalities to demolish private properties under specific circumstances, primarily when a building poses a safety hazard,” read the memo.
The building had a fire in early October, causing significant damage. At that time, the City of Calgary told LWC that they would prioritize securing the site and had started the process to enforce a demolition order.
Zev Klymochko, president of the Millcan-Ogden Community Association, said that they were thrilled that the demolition was moving forward.
“It’s something that we’ve been wanting for years, because the building’s been in a really sorry state and it’s been attracting disorder,” Klymochko told LWC.
“So, we’re thrilled to see that the demolition is well underway and seems to be moving quite quickly.”
Klymochko said the October fire may have been just the catalyst needed to expedite the demolition.
The City of Calgary’s memo said that the first phase of work, which included interior hazardous materials abatement, has been completed. Demolition work will continue Monday through Saturday from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The City said that completion is targeted for early 2026.
“Once the building has been taken down, the land will be cleared and left as an empty lot. The existing fence around the property and Legion rock will stay in place,” read the memo.
“As this property is privately owned, The City of Calgary does not currently have information about the future use of this land.”
Previously, the City said a total cost for the demolition was unknown, through the property owner would be responsible for the cost.
Looking toward the future
New Ward 9 Coun. Harrison Clark said that the demolition was good news for residents. He said it was a hot topic for many while on the campaign trail before the 2025 municipal election.
The question now becomes: What’s next?
Coun. Clark said that he’s still getting up to speed on the levers the community or the City has to move along potential redevelopment of the site.
“To that end, I mean, it’s important that something occur there,” Clark told LWC.
“I think getting through the process of bringing this thing down and making it an empty lot gives us a fresh start and perhaps moves us beyond where it’s been stuck with that landowner.”
Clark said he’d love to see some sort of community amenity that captures the memories the community had of their past Legion experiences. He said that could include something that embraced the multi-use concept, with a recreation or gathering space below, and mixed use above. Ultimately, Clark hopes that it can move the Ogden Road Main Streets project ahead.
“It’s been lingering in the mind of Ogden and Lynnwood, Millican for some time now, it’s like, what is going to happen?” Clark said.
“For this to finally be sort of happening, I think we’ll re-energize the area.”
Klymochko is more reserved about the site. He said there’s not a lot of faith in the current landowner. Still, a lot of things can happen by the spring, including a potential sale of the site. Either way, it could be the spark needed to move redevelopment in the area ahead, especially with the location sandwiched between two future Green Line stations.
“Catalyst is probably a great way to put it, because all it takes is one to sort of spark the rest, right?
“Once one person takes that risk and shows that they’re investing in the community, as long as there’s support from the community and the city, then I think we will see that development.
