Summerside Regional Development Corporation

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Feb 25, 2012: New link-way gives new life to the Holman Centre; SUMMERSIDE — It used to be part of Summerside’s downtown street system in the early 1900s, and now part of the Holman Building has been transformed into a thoroughfare once again.

Members of city’s business community had the chance to tour the building’s new “link-way” on Thursday at a Greater Summerside Chamber of Commerce business mixer.

The corridor, which connects the Holman Building’s south entrance with a doorway onto Water Street, was completed partly because of requests from downtown business owners.

Some of the retailers on the street wanted to have an access onto Water Street from the building.

SRDC general manager Arnold Croken said, “It’s proving to be a north-south corridor to connect the south side of the building to Water Street.”

The SRDC hadn’t originally intended on using the portion of the building where the link-way’s common area was built, but discovered the space’s potential after clearing out piping from an old furnace system. The south entry to the common area is located near the entrance to the Summerside Farmer’s Market. The space’s floor was recently tiled, while original foundation stones highlight the building’s history.

After work on the link-way is complete, the SRDC will consult with Wyatt Heritage Properties about displaying artifacts and photos that depict the Holman Building’s early days. “We have always had a commitment to the heritage folks in Summerside that we would create an area in the building to display some of the artifacts of the Holman Building before we started construction,” he said. “We are going to create some seating there, so if people come in off Water Street with their (coffee) and want to sit down and chat, it’ll be a place where they can do that. The same thing will apply to the tenants in the building.”

Façade work will also be done to the Water Street side of the building, which will highlight the entry to the link-way.

Croken said the SRDC had always planned on creating some sort of north-south corridor in the building, so the project’s cost was already factored into the original renovation budget.