An Edmonton architectural legend has been honoured for a lifetime of dedication and innovation by having his foremost building posthumously named after him.
Achitecture
An Edmonton architectural legend has been honoured for a lifetime of dedication and innovation by having his foremost building posthumously named after him.
The Coronation Fitness and Leisure Centre has been renamed the Peter Hemingway Fitness and Leisure Centre in Coronation Park.
Hemingway designed the centre as a Canadian Centennial project in 1967. The facility was officially opened to the public in 1970, at a cost of $1.2 million. It’s still in use today, with over 250,000 people visiting the facility annually.
But perhaps the most notable facet of the fitness centre is its design. The roof of the facility has a curved mass shape, which uses a “wind proof” system, and is also symbolic of waves, with a crest and trough shape built into the building itself.
“Peter Hemingway was one of Edmonton’s and Canada’s most significant architects. This building has stood the test of time as a architectural masterpiece. Visiting architects make a pilgrimage to this shrine, and it is one of Edmonton’s truly iconic buildings,” Vivian Manasc said. Manasc served as the first vice president and president elect of the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada.
Besides Coronation Pool, Hemingway also designed such Edmonton landmarks as the Muttart Conservatory, the Stanley Building, and the Central Pentecostal Tabernacle. The Coronation Pool received the highest honour in Canadian architecture, the Massey Medal, in 1970, and Hemingway was the first Albertan to receive the award.
Born in England in 1929, Hemingway originally came to Alberta after responding to an ad from the Government of Alberta recruiting architects. He worked with the Alberta Department of Public Works before going into a partnership with Charles Laubenthal. He then took over as sole proprietor of his architecture firm.
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