New plaque commemorates location of the former Shaarey Tzedec Synagogue
On August 11, 2022, Heritage Calgary presented a new plaque commemorating the former Shaarey Tzedec Synagogue at 103 17 AV SE.
Photo (l-r): Phoenix Giffuni, Senior Property Manager, FirstService Residential; Harry Sanders, Director, Jewish Historical Society of Southern Alberta; Josh Traptow, CEO, Heritage Calgary; Saundra Lipton, President, Jewish Historical Society of Southern Alberta; Kerri Robins, Marketing Manager, FirstService Residential.
On Thursday morning of August 11, 2022 Heritage Calgary presented a plaque commemorating the Shaarey Tzedec Synagogue to FirstService Residential and the Jewish Historical Society of Southern Alberta. The plaque was created to commemorate the location of the former synagogue which was demolished in 2013. It will replace a previous bronze plaque which went missing and was presumably stolen last year.
In attendance from FirstService Residential were Phoenix Giffuni, Senior Property Manager, Nick Poon-Tip, Resident Services Manager and Marketing Manager Kerri Robins; as well as Harry Sanders and Saundra Lipton from the Jewish Historical Society of Southern Alberta and staff from Heritage Calgary.
“We’re honoured to be part of the history in this great community,” said Glenne Manlig, President of FirstService Residential Alberta. “It’s important to reflect on and pay tribute to community roots and we’re proud to commemorate this important occasion.”
The plaque will be installed on a commemorative feature using bricks from the demolished synagogue at 103 17 AV SE. The commemorative feature is placed in a prominent corner location on the site and incorporated into a planter feature next to patio seating. Thank you to the Jewish Historical Society of Southern Alberta for their expertise in helping to prepare the information for the plaque.
“The opportunity to access our history in the locations where it took place adds to the vibrancy and richness of our city,” said Saundra Lipton, President of the Jewish Historical Society of Southern Alberta. “May we always honour those who came before us, and ensure that their stories are preserved for those who will come after.”
Photo: Shaarey Tzedec Plaque. August 2022.
From 1959 until 2013, 103 17 AV SE was the site of a Modern-style house of worship designed by the Calgary architectural firm Abugov & Sunderland. This impressive example of mid-century design featured a buff-brick exterior, “butterfly roof,” wood-panelledpaneled interior, and floor-to-ceiling corner windows that created a sanctuary flooded with light. Purpose-built as a synagogue, it was later converted into a church.
The site was part of a larger parcel of land along Centre Street that the Jewish community acquired from the City. In 1930, construction began on a Jewish community centre on 18 Avenue, although the Art Deco-influenced House of Israel building was not fully completed until 1949. The Calgary Hebrew School, which operated in the community building, purchased the 17 Avenue portion in 1943 for playground use.
Shaarey Tzedec. Canadian Architectural Archives at the University of Calgary.
In the 1930s, Calgary’s Jewish community supported two congregations, the House of Jacob, an Orthodox synagogue, and the more modern Beth Israel. When Beth Israel joined the Conservative movement in the 1950s, some community members wanted to continue with a “modern Orthodox” synagogue. They established a new congregation, Shaarey Tzedec (Hebrew for “gates of righteousness”), and built their synagogue on 17 Avenue in 1959. It was dedicated in 1960.
For over a quarter of a century, Shaarey Tzedec and Beth Israel were Calgary’s two largest Jewish congregations. They merged in 1986 to form the new Beth Tzedec Congregation, which held services at this location temporarily while the former Beth Israel on Glenmore Trail SW was remodelledremodeled. The former Shaarey Tzedec building later became the home of the Centre for Positive Living before its demolition in 2013.
Stunning and dynamic in appearance, Shaarey Tzedec comprised three connected rectangular masses of different sizes.
Learn more about Shaarey Tzedec on the Inventory of Evaluated Historic Resources.