From appearances the McLear Block Annex in Lacombe Alberta is surely no larger than a walk-in closet and dwarfed by the adjacent Denike Block. It dates to the 1910s and built about the same time as the much more spacious McLear Block to which its attached (to the right). The annex has been home to a real estate agent and barber shop over the years, but today a business called Winnie’s is here. Ice cream time baby, but they weren’t open on our visit. We have this…ahem…little penchant for frozen treats and obsess about them all the time.
“The McLear Block and Annex are valued as part of a grouping of early Edwardian commercial buildings that dominate the downtown core of Lacombe, making it one of the best preserved historic centres in Alberta.” – City of Lacombe.
We’re not sure the exact square footage of the McLear Block Annex, but it’s much longer than it is wide. Still, the frontage make it look so tiny that one must wonder how it’s even usable. It must hold title as the smallest business block in Lacombe and for all we know may be in contention for all Alberta. We have to go in next time we’re in Lacombe and it’s open. Not just for a scoop of French Vanilla, but we’re eager to see how it looks inside.
“It’s not clear why the (McLear) decided to have this completely separate building tacked onto, rather than included in the McLear Block: it’s possible that a mistake was made in surveying the plot of land, or maybe it was an afterthought.” – Alberta Culture & Multiculturalism Historic Sites Service. It does almost seems like an afterthought and we can’t be alone in that thought.
The Denike Block also dates to the early 1910s and for a long time housed Denike Jewellers on the main floor. Both it and the McLear Block have historic designations.
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