First Things First: A New Roof!

When the McKenzie Sharland Grocery was designated a Municipal Historic Resource in 2014, Donald Luxton and Associates was retained to develop a Conservation Plan. This firm has extensive experience in heritage conservation and is well known throughout Western Canada for residential, commercial and institutional restoration projects.

As part of the Conservation Plan, Luxton and Associates created a Statement of Significance, listing the character defining elements of the building. Conservation guidelines were established and work proposed to preserve, restore and rehabilitate the building. As a Municipal Historic Site, any work completed on the McKenzie Sharland Grocery needs to meet Park Canada's Standards and Guidelines for the Conservation of Historic Places in Canada (2010).

In the Conservation Plan, it was noted that the roof fabric was failing and that the false-front parapet, a character defining element, was pulling away from the structure. This repair work was the first action taken by Cube Development when it purchased the building in the fall of 2016.

Before repairing the roof fabric, a contractor was hired and steps were taken to true up the parapet and replace some of the badly deteriorated boards. The fascia boards, also in a state of decay, were replaced at the same time. 

Rather than tear up the existing roof, with its rolled asphalt surface, a new layer of 12.5mm (1/2”) exterior grade plywood (not OSB) sheathing was attached to provide a sound substrate for the new roof. The final step was to apply the aluminum drip edge and Soprafix Modified Membrane Roof System SBS (Styrene Butadiene Styrene).  One of the challenges in historical conservation is to balance traditional materials and construction techniques with the advantages of modern systems. We don’t actually know for sure what the early roofing was but since it is not a “character defining element” and not really visible, we can use the new materials. The eavestrough, a modern but important conservation component, will have to wait until the new fascia board is painted.