At the WMRC’s September meeting, the very first in-person meeting in a year, the executive was finally able to hand out a couple of awards to some very worthy recipients. This was usually done at our AGM and banquet, but the club hadn’t been able to hold this event for two years.
WMRC Program Director Dave Downie won the Peter Able Memorial Award for photo special event. Long time member Felix Lesiuk won the Nick Andrusiak Memorial Award for best digital prototype photo. Congratulations to the both of you!
On November 5 Via Rail served notice to the Winnipeg Railway Museum that the part of Union Station they use will no longer be available. Their last day of operation will be December 31, 2021.
Via states that tracks one and two need to be brought up to safety standards. The station is undergoing extensive renovations to its exterior wall. The museum occupies 37,500 square feet in the station. Via states that they will continue to house the museum’s artifacts and they will be working with the museum to find a new home.
Union Station is a national heritage site. Heritage Canada regulations require Via to keep it in a good state of repair. The west wall of the train shed has been slowly deteriorating for several years.
Construction of the new wall is scheduled to begin in January 2022, at which time the Museum space becomes a designated Construction Zone requiring suitable PPE for all personnel. Only construction personnel will be permitted on site during the construction.
After the new wall is complete, the current Building Code Occupancy Requirements will apply, and the space the museum occupies does not meet these requirements. When the museum was opened in the early 1990's it was in accordance with the occupancy requirements of the building code at that time.
The plywood partition between Tracks 2 & 3 needs to be replaced with metal/concrete/glass, the electrical plant and lighting must be upgraded, the sprinkler system must be replaced, to the tune of $3,000,000 in order to qualify for an occupancy permit.
The museum is home to the Gateway Western Railway, operated by the Winnipeg Model Railroad Club. The contents of the Gateway are the property of the club. The structure that contains the Gateway is owned by the museum. No notice has been given as to whether or when the club will have to remove their display.
It has been a very rough year for Winnipeg’s model railroad and rail fan community. Along with the closing of the museum, the Assiniboine Valley Railway and Cellar Dweller Hobby Supply have also closed this year.
For more information on the closing of the museum, please go to the following links:
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/railway-museum-relocate-union-station-via-winnipeg-1.6245828
https://winnipeg.ctvnews.ca/winnipeg-railway-museum-closing-at-end-of-december-1.5660148
https://globalnews.ca/news/8363527/winnipeg-railway-museum-to-close-doors-dec-31-seeks-new-home-for-2022/
https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/winnipeg-railway-museum-to-shutter-at-end-of-year-575720112.html
We have two great presentations on tap a our next meeting! Rob Badmington will present "Change is the only constant". He will show some of the changes that have taken place in railroading, and how you can use them on your layout. Ron has had a 35 year career in the Engineering and Purchasing departments at CP and CN. He is the editor of Highball, the PNR 6th division newsletter.
Then Don Thomas will do a clinic on the history of the Banff railroad station and its summer passenger train operations. He worked at CP with legendary Corporate Archivist Omer Lavallée and later worked in their regulatory affairs department for 33 years.He is a director of the Canadian Railroad Historical Association’s (CRHA) Calgary and Southwest Chapter, the National Dream Legacy Society and is a member of the Lexington Group and the Calgary Model Railway Society.
The canteen will be open, and we will be holding our monthly model and photo displays.
Our meeting time at the Charleswood Legion, 6003 Roblin Boulevard, has been permanently changed from 7:30PM to 7:00PM. Doors will be open at 6:30PM. Capacity at the Tank Room in the Legion is limited to 50. The Legion requires all visitors to the building to show proof of full vaccination before entry. The province has mandated that masks will be required in public places. If you wish to attend the meeting on Zoom please contact us at wmrc.trainclub@gmail.com for a link.
