The office entrance at Canadian Mental Health Association has a new look that will also improve safety in the downtown area.
The covered vestibule was eliminated at its 5017-50th Ave. location, along with the two big display windows which have been broken at least six times in the past five years.
“For people walking from the bars late at night, it would be a place where they would go and fight,” said CHMA executive director Patricia Turnbull on Friday.
Now there’s no reason to hang around the building and eliminating the big windows prevents cold air from entering the office, making it more comfortable for reception staff, she said.
Three .6 by 1.2-metre windows were installed, along with a new door.
The office reopened on Thursday.
The project was estimated to cost about $120,000, but Scott Builders did the job for $70,000 by reducing management fees, along with donations of time and materials from subtrades, Turnbull said.
“That’s a huge savings. We would have had to use fundraising dollars to cover all of the costs.”
And workers retained the exterior style of the downtown building.
“Scott Builders tried to keep the look very authentic to match the rest of the upstairs and by matching brickwork next to it.”
szielinski@www.reddeeradvocate.com