The original city hall bell has not been seen in years, but that could change if money is allocated in the 2021 capital budget to construct a stand for the carillon.
The municipality purchased and erected the bell on a derrick behind town hall in 1902 when the town hall was on Main Street and River Street. Officials moved the bell to the new city hall on Fairford Street two years later and used the carillon for fire alarms and curfew calls.
Forty-seven years later, the bell was removed from city hall and given to St. George Anglican Church, before the church donated it in 1972 to the arts museum, which displayed the carillon in Crescent Park. Around 2010 the bell was removed from the park due to vandalism and stored at the city yards, where it deteriorated due to neglect and the weather before bell Saskatchewan Polytechnic refurbished the bell in 2018.
The heritage advisory committee wants to see the historic instrument displayed in a public place on a bell stand.
During its Sept. 21 regular meeting, council voted 6-1 in favour of the allocation of $20,000 from the heritage reserve account for the construction of a bell stand to be considered during the 2021 capital budget deliberations.
Council also approved a motion that the replacement of the city hall clock face and restoration of the city hall bell for $25,000 be considered and prioritized in the 2021-25 parks and recreation capital budget submission.
Coun. Brian Swanson was opposed.
Council discussion
Coun. Crystal Froese was excited to see both projects potentially move forward, especially since community business Steady Metalworks had offered to build and install the bell stand for roughly $16,125.
“The stand looks of the era,” she said, pointing out the bell is 118 years old, is an iconic piece of Moose Jaw’s heritage, and was nearly restored to its original cast iron look.
With the city hall bell, Froese admitted that she had never known there was a bell there since she had never heard it ring in her life. She noted that the bell works and can be hooked up to an automated clapper that can ring on special occasions, such as Remembrance Day. However, the glass in the clock face needs to be fixed before the bell can ring.
“It is about our history and heritage. We have to look at heritage as an asset. It impacts so many areas of our city, from economic to our sense of place in the community,” added Froese.
The heritage reserve account has $21,358, which was built up through fundraising initiatives to support the refurbishment of the Natatorium, said Swanson. However, there has not been any contributions to that account in years.
Instead of building a bell stand for $16,125, Swanson preferred to see a stand built for $4,000, which would probably look just as nice. He added that the bell did just fine when it sat in front of the art museum.
The bell weighs 675 kilograms (1,500 pounds) and needs a sturdy structure to hold it and ensure it’s out of the way, replied Froese. Meanwhile, city staff removed the bell from Crescent Park because it was vandalized. The fate of the bell was largely unknown until it was found in the city yards a couple of years ago.
While Froese was unsure when the last time fundraising occurred for the heritage reserve, she indicated that the Natatorium would require way more money than $21,358.
The next regular council meeting is Monday, Oct. 5.
