Regina’s old Sears clearance building will be closing its doors for safety reasons, which means local businesses that utilize the space will need to find a new location.
The century-old building in Regina’s Warehouse District area, which dates back to 1918, has recently been deemed not up to safety codes by Regina Fire and Protective Services.
“Regina Fire & Protective Services Inspectors were called to this property due to public complaints,” the City of Regina said in an email statement. “Several serious fire & life safety deficiencies were identified upon inspection and our team was working with the owner on options to remedy.
“In this situation the owner made the decision to not address the deficiencies and instead to cease some tenancies.”
The old Sears building was a home to numerous local businesses and events including the Centennial Market, Al Benesocky’s Shock House and Regina Battle Arena. The owner of Regina Battle Arena has called the old Sears building home for the past five years.
Dylan Biasutto said he is at a crossroad because he is unsure of his next move.
“I felt gutted, it was a sense of dread. I knew I had to call and cancel youth groups, school groups, (and) kids’ birthdays,” said Biasutto. “It’s an older building and we kind of saw this coming eventually. We definitely thought we had more time.”
According to a Facebook post, the building is scheduled to close its doors end of May. Global News reached out to the building’s management company Colliers but did not receive a response by deadline.
Local residents have fond memories of the building prior to the Centennial Market.
“I grew up in this area … My mother and I walked down here to shop when it was Eaton’s. It was a grocery store upstairs as well as the Eaton store underneath. So that’s the memories I have,” said Wayne Smith.
“It’s sad … it’s a heritage building but if it’s not being kept up and it’s a fire hazard, those things happen.”
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