Quote:
Originally Posted by Curmudgeon
Perhaps the land value in 1914 a block north of Eaton's would have made it desirable to sell and build a more solid building a few blocks west on Edmonton.
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I took a look at the newspapers. The new church was announced on July 3, 1913 and on May 25, 1914 the Free Press reported the laying of the cornerstone. I can't find a reason stated, but it sounds as though the old church (1883, apparently) was small and out of date compared to what was felt to be needed. Interestingly, and to your point, the old church was sold for $250,000 while the new one cost $300,000 ($80,000 for the lot and $220,000 for the building itself), so the entire transaction came in at just $50,000 net. The article concluded by noting that a "vast skyscraper" was to be built on the old site.
So it sounds like the church made a very good deal, receiving top dollar for its old site at the peak of the economic boom. By the spring of 1914, when the cornerstone was laid, they likely wouldn't have realized anything close to $250,000 for that lot. And the vast skyscraper remained a vast and unrealized dream.