A total of $65,000 is available in The Next Great Save Competition
By Diego Flammini
Staff Writer
Farms.com
Three grain elevators in Alberta are finalists to receive a grant to support their preservation.
The buildings in Nanton at the Canadian Grain Elevator Discovery Centre, are among the candidates to receive a $50,000 grant from The Next Great Save Competition.
The competition, administered by the National Trust for Canada, a national charity, awards a total of $65,000 to communities.
In total, 12 sites across the country are up to receive financial support.
The second-place winner will receive $10,000 and $5,000 will go to third place.
Canadians are encouraged to vote for their favourite sites between April 18 and May 6.
The National Trust for Canada and Ecclesiastical Insurance will announce the winners on May 7.
Any winnings would be put towards multiple initiatives at the elevators.
“With your help we will be able to begin restoration and paint our two former Alberta Wheat Pool beauties,” Nanton’s competition webpage says. We are also working to ensure the property is secured and carry out several vital studies which are necessary to stabilize the structure.”
The elevators aren’t Alberta’s only entry into the competition.
The Roxy Theatre in Coleman is also a finalist for the grand prize grant.
The $50,000 would be used to “restore the classic lines of its historic facade, marquee, entry way doors and windows, aluminum and brick siding, and iconic Roxy neon sign,” the theatre’s page says.
The theatre has been closed since 2003 until the Crowsnest Cultural and Recreation Society purchased it in 2021.
The other Western Canadian site in the running for the grants is St. Andrew’s Lodge in Qualicum Beach, B.C