Quarter-century for Clark Hall Renovations

Quarter-century for Clark Hall Renovations

October 28, 2022

(The Brandon College Original Building and Clark Hall.)

Twenty-five years ago this week, Brandon University re-opened the doors to its original Brandon College building and the attached Clark Hall, with students, factually, staff and alumni streaming into a completely renewed structure, after a two-year, $12.5 million retrofit (more than $21 million in 2022 dollars).

The Brandon College Original Building first opened in 1901, followed five years later by the attached Clark Hall, then a women’s residence. Each originally cost about $40,000 to build, on land that was originally purchased in 1899 for $300. They are provincially designated heritage structures that remain Brandon’s oldest public buildings still in continuous use.

The grand re-opening of the buildings, in 1997, was marked with a ribbon-cutting ceremony, an open house and tours, along with Homecoming 1997 celebrations. The Brandon Sun produced a 12-page special section and covered the re-opening with a front-page story.

These days, Brandon University is once again entering a new era, guided by Mamaawii-atooshke aakihkiwiin, our Strategic Plan, which envisions BU as Canada’s Finest Regional University.

(It was front-page news in 1997, when Brandon University re-opened Clark Hall and the Original Building.)