Victoriaville mall demolition to start in July

A south-side Thunder Bay landmark is coming down this summer.

Demolition of Victoriaville mall — which opened in 1980 — will begin in July, the city said at a media event on Thursday.

The work is part of the Reimagine Victoriaville project, which will see Victoria Avenue reopened to vehicular traffic between Brodie and Archibald streets.

"You'll start to see the contractor mobilizing to the area next week," Aaron Ward, manager of the city's engineering section, said at a groundbreaking ceremony to mark the start of the project on Thursday. "The first thing they're going to be doing is putting up their construction fencing and their staging areas off of Archibald Street, as well as off of Justice Avenue."

Following that, temporary access to area businesses will be set up, Ward said, with the demolition beginning in mid-July.

"They're expecting the entire mall structure will be down in two months, or two months and a week," Ward said. "Come end of summer, the entire area will be open to the air again."

Ward said traffic will once again be able to drive along that section of Victoria Avenue by October 2026, and the overall project, including streetscaping and landscaping, should be done by June 2027.

"It's invigorating," Thunder Bay Mayor Ken Boshcoff said. "I think this, also, is part of the community spirit."

"People can feel the the uplift of all these types of projects that are going on as they all come together," he said. "You can see the community strengthening in the new prosperity."

McKellar Ward Coun. Brian Hamilton — Victoriaville is located in the McKellar Ward — said revitalization of the city's downtown areas is a priority for city council.

"This is a big component of the south side revitalization," he said. "This is like six years in the making."

""As long as I've been on council, this has been a big and important project for me, but not just for me, for actually the residents and the adjacent neighbourhoods."

"I couldn't be more happy."