The mammoth, historic fire wall, built in 1915 in Ogema, came crashing down to the ground during a destructive winter storm that hammered most of southern Saskatchewan on January 15.
Back in the day, the original Ogema fire wall cost a mere $4,600 to build - no small amount for way back then - but now, given its current state of devastation, the wall would cost $385,000 to rebuild.
Ogema Mayor Carol Peterson affirmed in a recent interview that town council has decided not to rebuild the historic wall.
The cost to rebuild was cited as the ultimate deciding factor in council's decision. Peterson confided that, since the town of Ogema was already involved in numerous other important costly projects, it would not be practical or financially feasible to add one more.
Admitting that council's decision was an extremely tough one to make, Mayor Peterson added that, “In the end, even if the wall were rebuilt, it would no longer be an historic 105-year-old wall. It would simply be a new wall.”
As an alternative, Peterson said, "Instead of rebuilding the wall, council is seriously contemplating building a cairn to replace the wall, and possibly offering historic bricks for sale to anyone who would like to own a piece of the town’s history.”
