2017 Province House National Historic Site Infrastructure Investment Funding and Construction Timeline Grand Total New Investment: $6M        

Province House National Historic Site

Province House National Historic Site, the birthplace of Confederation and the seat of Prince Edward Island's provincial legislature, stands as a celebrated Canadian landmark. It was commemorated as a national historic site by the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada due to its significance as the first meeting place of the Fathers of Confederation: the Charlottetown Conference of 1864. This conference, along with the Quebec Conference of 1864, ultimately led to the Canadian Confederation in 1867.

Province House is an example of Neo-Classical Revival architecture and was constructed between 1843 and 1847 to house Prince Edward Island’s provincial legislature, the Supreme Court, and to serve as a depository of public documents for Prince Edward Island.

The Government of Canada has an agreement with the Province of Prince Edward Island, to restore, preserve, interpret, and administer Province House as a national historic site. Through a Memorandum of Agreement signed on October 1st, 1974, the federal government was given exclusive occupancy of designated areas for 99 years.

Province House is currently closed for conservation work. Until the site closed, it was occupied by both Parks Canada and the Province of PEI. Parks Canada operated Province House as a national historic site and provided guided tours for the public. At the same time, the Legislative Assembly of PEI met in Province House and various provincial government offices were also located at the site. Province House is an important landmark in the city of Charlottetown and a major attraction for visitors to the Island.

Federal Infrastructure Funding

Project name: Province House Conservation project
Announced in 2016: $21 M
Announced in 2015: $20 M
Estimated Additional Financing: $6 M
Estimated Total Cost: $47 M
Project description: This investment will specifically address fire code compliance and universal accessibility standards while maintaining historic character-defining elements throughout the conservation project.

Further information is available on our Province House NHS Conservation Project page.

Province House National Historic Site – Phase 1 Construction Details and Timeline

· The tender for the first phase of work on Province House National Historic Site was recently awarded. This $8.7 million contract has been awarded to Quinan Construction Ltd of Orillia, Ontario. Quinan will be engaging several local subcontractors in their work. Phase two of this project will go out to tender later in 2017.

· During this phase of the project, the finishing will be removed from interior walls of the building, from the outer walls extending 5 feet inside of each room. This will give access to the exterior sandstone walls. The mechanical and electrical systems, as well as all exterior doors and windows, will also be removed. The foundation will be dug out and replaced under the north and south porticos, and a steel scaffold will be erected around the entire structure.

· This spring, the contractor will specifically focus on stabilizing the building, particularly the porticos and in the southwest corner around the windows. Windows will begin to be removed, as well as the flagstones and stairs under the porticos. Excavations will begin around the building to allow for access to the foundation. In the interior of the building, work this spring will also deal with the building’s stabilization, as well of the removal of basement flooring. The contractor will also begin to remove the mechanical and electrical systems.

· Quinan began preparing the site on April 24th, 2017 and is expected to complete phase one in December 2017.