People removing their bricks along Olympic Plaza pathway ahead of revamp

Bricks along the pathway at Calgary's Olympic Plaza have been removed and it wasn't by the city.

It appears people are coming to grab bricks with their names, family members' names or a saying ahead of the plaza closing.

"I don't think it would be a very good idea to remove it. Take photos and that's going to be our memory,” said Kathy Spring.

Spring was walking around with her husband trying to spot the five bricks her mom bought ahead of the 1988 Olympic Winter Games.

The bricks cost $19.88 each, matching the year and allowing Calgarians to add their names to the Olympic legacy.

Throughout the walkway, there are more than 33,000 bricks.

“It’s very emotional and it’s important to family history,” said Spring.

The area is set to be shut down for both the Arts Commons and the Olympic Plaza transformation projects at the end of the year.

The Calgary Municipal Land Corporation (CMLC), which is overseeing the project, did examine the possibility of removing and returning the bricks to purchasers.

“Individual excavation of the 33,000 bricks is not feasible and is unlikely to be successful without causing significant damage to the removed bricks and those around them and would also come at significant cost and schedule impacts to the project. As such, the bricks will not be preserved in the redevelopment effort,” the CMLC said in a statement provided to CTV News.

The City of Calgary invited Calgarians to commemorate the bricks through a number of events including the Olympic brick finder.

“They're not in a condition where if you can take it out, it will be intact. So as a result of that, it's not a wise thing to do,” said Ward 7 Coun. Terry Wong.

“Having everybody coming down to take it out will cause a lot of confusion or disruption. People are encouraged to come down to do an etching of the brick.”

The removal of bricks or any infrastructure within a park is strictly prohibited as part of the Parks and Pathways Bylaw.

Since bricks are found on the walking surface, removing them creates a safety hazard which could result in the plaza closing earlier.