More than 5,000 applications made to recover Calgary's Olympic bricks

Thousands of bricks at Olympic Plaza are expected to be saved as the city works to renovate the space.

Work is now underway to recover thousands of bricks from downtown Calgary's Olympic Plaza.

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In a release on Thursday, the City of Calgary says it received 5,105 applications from families wishing to reclaim their bricks, which were part of an initiative to commemorate the 1988 Winter Olympics.

Now that the registration period is over, the city says work is underway to review the applications and determine if the bricks they refer to are capable of being saved.

"Over the next two weeks, crews will continue to carefully remove the bricks from Olympic Plaza. However, due to factors such as the 40-year-old age of the brick, prior damage, replacements, and construction materials used, despite best efforts, it may not be possible to remove all bricks intact," the city said in a statement.

Officials said if the brick is saved, the applicants will be sent an email before Jan. 3, 2025, which will include information on when and where it can be picked up in-person.

The bricks need to be removed from Olympic Plaza for renovations that will eventually see a new space as well as an expanded building for Arts Commons.