Fall/Winter 2003

Volume 23 Number 2

IN THIS ISSUE

Introduction
In profile
ANA News
Archives Advisor
Presidents Report
People & Places
RCIA Article
Education Report
Submissions? Questions?

Home Page

DB: The grand opening of the new PAA was a terrific success. How do you feel in you new home?
ST: Thank you for your kind words! The event on October 5 was quite successful in celebrating the opening of the new home for the Provincial Archives of Alberta. As for myself and the Archive staff and volunteers - we feel wonderful to be in our new home.

DB: Many have tried over the past twenty-five years [Don: is this a logical span? Sandra: sure], a few came close, you pulled it off - we have a new provincial facility! What was he deciding factor that brought this project to fruition? Can you remember a point where you knew the project was a go?

ST: I don't think there was just one deciding factor that brought this project to fruition. A lot of the right things happened at the right time. I knew the project was a go when advised by Alberta Public Works, Supply & Services that the new Archives was now officially a capital development project. At that moment I felt that we would have a new building soon!

DB: This project was a huge undertaking. Briefly lead us through the process.

ST: The search for a new archives building began in 1974, when there was some consideration given to adding three more floors to the current 102 Avenue building. In 1979 a report was prepared, with Alberta Public Works, to build a new building in the Edmonton downtown core. In 1982 the project was abandoned because of budget downsizing. In 1983-84 the project was considered by Alberta Public Works to be its number one capital works project. In 1985 the project was presented to Priorities Committee and did not garner sufficient support.

The Provincial Archives Advisory Board recommended new accommodations to the Board's MLA, Stan Woloshyn, at their February 5, 1996 meeting and he promised to take action. The Board was then fully involved in the search for new accommodations from that meeting onward, and devoted most of its meetings to reviewing developments and/or plans.

In the fall of 1996, the leasing branch of Alberta Public Works, Supply & Services attempted to find new (leased) accommodations for the Provincial Archives.

In 1997 the capital projects branch of Alberta Public Works prepared a facility program/a needs assessment for the Archives' new accommodations that identified client and preservation needs.

In December 1997 the Alberta 100th Anniversary Strategy Committee, co-chaired by Jack Donahue and Colleen Klein, released its final report. The need for a new Provincial Archives building figured prominently. Mrs. Klein saw a state-of-art archives, with sufficient funding, as critical to engage Albertans with their past in order to appropriately celebrate Alberta's Centennial in 2005.

In November 1998, Alberta Public Works completed a design program report for a select number of existing buildings that could respond well to renovations for an archives.

In September 1998 the ministry held open houses at the Provincial Archives current location and at the Westerra Campus in Stony Plain

The chairs/presidents of the Provincial Archives Advisory Board, the Archives Society of Alberta, the Alberta Genealogical Society, and the Documentary Heritage Society of Alberta met the then Minister of Community Development, the Honourable Stan Woloshyn, on August 4, 1999 to discuss the Roper Road facility. The group then toured the facility and recommended its reuse. The chair of the Advisory Board took that recommendation to an August 5, 1999 morning meeting of the Board, and reviewed it with the Board members. The Board then made a formal recommendation to the Minister to proceed with the Roper Road solution. The Minister agreed, and made the formal announcement on the afternoon of August 5, 1999, announcing that the Edmonton capital Health Authority's Patient Services Centre, on Roper Road in south Edmonton, had been chosen for renovation for a new Provincial Archives.

In March 2000 Alberta Infrastructure (formerly Alberta Public Works, Supply & Services) completed a detailed design development report to renovate the Roper Road building into new accommodations for the Provincial Archives.

There was been terrific community involvement in the project:

• The Archives Society of Alberta has two seats on the Advisory Board and thus has been involved in the new accommodations discussions. Representative members of the Society also reviewed and commented on the 1997 facility program.
• Representatives of the Archives Society of Alberta, the Alberta Genealogical Society, and the Documentary Heritage Society of Alberta joined senior staff to form a design committee that reviewed the initial design program for the building.
• The Minister's Advisory Board took the first steps towards the new building at its February 5, 1996 meeting, and was involved thereafter. Starting in 2000 the Advisory Board meetings have focused for the most part on meeting with the project manager and the architect to review the project's development. The Board members have been supportive of the new building project from its start.

• Milestone dates for the Archives project included:
• April 2001 - contract documents completed
• May 2001 - tender call for renovations
• June 2001 - tenders awarded and construction commenced
• August 2001 - shelving tender call and award completed
• January 2003 - shelving installation started
• March 2003 - construction/renovation completed
• May 2003 - shelving installation substantially completed
• April 2003 - Archives staff moved into the new building
• June 2003 to November 2003 - move of the archival collection
• October 5, 2003 - Official Grand Opening

DB: During the fact-finding period of the Centennial Legacy process, there was considerable public lobbying. Did it play a role in the process? How about all those new archives phone calls? What other input was crucial?

ST: I am told that the firm that was commissioned to conduct telephone surveys about possible Centennial projects was singularly amazed at the number of respondents who identified a new Provincial Archives as the number one priority for Alberta's Centennial.

DB: At the opening ceremony, Community Development Minister Gene Zwozdesky said the building is second to none in Canada and possibly North America. What makes this facility a state of the art provincial archives?

ST: Our Minister, the Honourable Gene Zwozdesky is absolutely right when he describes this new Archives building as second to none. The new building features:

• A very welcoming and architecturally interesting Reading Room and Library (I personally love the window seats in the Library as a great place to curl up and read!)
• The Reading Room includes a half-dozen computers with which clients can access internet sites for archival research
• The Reading Room is designed so that the Reference Archivist is located in the middle of the room, seen from all the researcher desks and with a clear view line of the research areas (for security reasons)
• The Reading Room, Library, Shipping & Receiving Areas are all monitored by security cameras
• Twenty environmentally-controlled storage vaults on site
• Each storage vault has its back-up
• The storage area is built as a building-within-a-building, so as not to expose any of the vault walls to outside walls
• and to make expansion of the storage areas easier
• The building itself has a gas generator back-up system
• The building includes other client amenities, such as an exhibit area, retail outlet, small conference center (with a lecture room and board room)
• The lecture room and board room are equipped with automated screens, computer link-ups, and video conferencing capabilities
• The lecture room is also equipped with a large plasma television set
• A two-story, well-equipped conservation laboratory
• A large processing area, and rooms to hold records before they undergo conservation or processing
• A large administration area, with plenty of space for staff, short-term contractors, and our volunteers
• A location on a major thoroughfare in Edmonton, with good bus service, and excellent access to the freeway
• A sophisticated computer system controls security, lights, temperature control, etc. making this building one of the most sophisticated to operate and maintain in Alberta
• A fifteen acre lot on which major additions or changes would not be problematic.

DB: The new PAA is wonderful, but the accompanying mandate and responsibilities are daunting. What are your plans to meet these challenges with present and future staff and resources?

ST: While the building is new, the mandate and the responsibilities remain the same. We are still a total archives and the corporate archives of the Government of Alberta. There are challenges that lie ahead - like the RAD backlog, internet access for our clientele, archiving electronic records, and so on, much like every other archives in Alberta or in Canada - and we are making strides in addressing these matters. In the meanwhile we continue to depend on the drive, ingenuity and creativity of our staff, and the generous support of our Friends Society and the Archives Society of Alberta.

DB: If you were to provide a word of advice to someone undertaking an archives construction and relocation project, what would it be?

ST: Here are a few things that I learned during this project -

• No project every failed because of too much planning. It is so much easier to erase lines on a architectural drawing than take down walls.
• No archives can survive without the concern and support of stakeholders, supporters and volunteers (because everyone needs friends).
• Everyone involved will rise to the occasion and become heroes of the project at some point.
• Constantly keep your eye on the prize, and don't sweat the small stuff. But at the same time, remember that certain details require careful attention.
• Talented, patient and understanding architects and project managers are precious gifts!
• Manage up, down, out and in - and keep everyone apprised of your expectations, your progress and your successes.
• Have fun every once and a while - and remember to celebrate at the end of the project!!

DB: How did your celebrate? Were there other events, in addition to the Grand Official Opening?

ST: Indeed there were. We had a multitude of events to celebrate the Official Opening:

• September 3 Commemorative Tree Planting ceremony in memory of the late Alan Ridge, Provincial Archivist of Alberta (1968-1984)
• September 30 First of the evening Official Opening Lecture Series (with Dr. David Leonard)
• October 1 Special afternoon presentation of a gift clock for the Reading Room by the project architect, Fraser Brinsmead of Brinsmead Ziola Associates
• October 1 Stakeholders Reception & Tour, including a cheque presentation to the Provincial Archives by the Documentary Heritage Society of Alberta (the PAA's Friends Society)
• October 5 Official Grand Opening, with guest of honour Dr. Colleen Klein
• October 6 Special morning presentation of his latest book by Hugh Taylor, Provincial Archivist of Alberta (1965-1967)
• October 6 Afternoon staff event
• October 6 Archives Society of Alberta Dinner to launch Archives Week in Alberta 2003
• October 7 Second of the evening Official Opening Lecture Series (with Radomir Bilash)
• October 10 Reception & Tour for the Government of Alberta's records management community
• October 11 Reception, Talks & Tours for Provincial Archives' volunteers
• October 14 Third of the evening Official Opening Lecture Series (with Dr. Michael Payne)
• October 21 Fourth and last of the evening Official Opening Lecture Series (with Patricia Myers)

DB: Your team did a great job. How are they holding up? What is next?

ST: Thank you! I think so too. What's next is to return to the business of archives. I look forward to returning to the business of acquiring, preserving and making archival records available. For example, we want to complete our RAD backlog project with the Archives Society of Alberta, and to begin our digitization projects as part of Alberta InSight. We have draft best practices on hold that we want to complete, and a number of other projects. We are looking forward to the Centennial celebrations in 2005, and are planning an exhibit and some special events in celebration of Alberta's Centennial. We want to continue to be a part of the successes and accomplishments of the archives community in Alberta.

DB: Many thanks, Sandra. When I saw you among the platform guests at the opening, you were beaming with pride. You have a lot to be proud of!