A southwest restoration project is looking for additional support from the municipal government.
The Shaunavon Grand Hotel, owned by Kent Karemaker, has been under renovation for the past two years. He will soon be presenting a petition to Shaunavon's town council encouraging them to grant a heritage-based tax exemption.
“It's currently taxed as a storage building,” said Karemaker. “It’s currently earning me no money and costing me a lot of money to do the work that I'm doing, so I've been trying to get the attention of [town] council to recognize the work I'm doing by way of a tax break.”
Karemaker says he’s confused how a building with as much historical significance as the Grand Hotel hasn’t been looked after in the 45 years since its closure.
“I don't understand how there isn't a program, or at least a way to recognize the work that I'm doing,” he says. “Not only for the sake of the building, but for tourism.”
Since the restoration project began two years ago, support from the community has grown.
“The community here locally has been very interested in what I've been doing,” Karemaker said. “I document everything on Facebook and social media so people can see that it's quite consistent, and I think now the local community is starting to really get behind the idea that maybe I can actually make this happen.”
Karemaker hopes to have the hotel reopened to guests in the coming years, so they too can appreciate the dedication to the history of the town of Shaunavon.
He will be speaking at the Swift Current Museum on September 17 at a Lunch & Learn, detailing his restoration journey and the unique history behind the Grand Hotel.