SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
The death of the legendary Old Town maverick Stan 'The Man' Larocque is still fresh in the minds of many Yellowknifers, and now the days are numbered for his landmark namesake as well.

The shack previously occupied by Old Town legend Stan 'The Man' Larocque is slated to be torn down by the city, an issue that has now become a pending legal matter. It is one of only a handful of remaining shacks in Old Town, situated just off Back Bay on Anderson-Thomson Boulevard. - Candace Thomson/NNSL photo

Larocque's small, unassuming brown shack, numbered 4709 Anderson-Thomson Boulevard and proudly boasting 'The Man' on its front side, is slated for demolition. The city has posted a notice on the building notifying residents that it plans to demolish the shack by the end of April.

There could be a hitch to the city's plans, however, as it appears the demolition may be contested in court.

As of last week, the issue has become a pending legal matter and the city will not comment any further, said Nalini Naidoo, director of communications for the city.

But earlier this month, Jeff Humble, the city's director of planning and development, explained that in the past, the city has torn down shacks once the inhabitants, referred to as squatters by the city, have died or otherwise left the premises. Ninety-four-year-old Larocque, who came to Yellowknife from northern Alberta in the late 1930s, died Feb. 15.

According to a building inventory compiled by the Yellowknife Heritage Committee in 2005, Larocque's shack was built in the 1960s and was previously owned by George McLaughlin around 1986.

"I believe this is the last shack in that part of the bay," said Humble, commenting on the area historically known as Peace River Flats – named after its original inhabitants who, like Larocque, came from northern Alberta.

"When a long-standing squatter has been in a building and has vacated that building it cannot be occupied by another individual. It's simply a policy that we have that allows us to determine how or when we act on squatter shacks."

The shack's uncertain future was first brought to Yellowknifer's attention during the first week of April when two of Larocque's grandchildren approached the newspaper, saying the shack was to be torn down, which they planned to protest. They said a petition would be going around Old Town to gather signatures to save the building.

The protest didn't happen, however, and since then the family has declined to commented on the shack.

Historian Ryan Silke said there has been a history of shacks -- a word he considers slightly derogatory – in Old Town and along with it a history of the city tearing them down.

"The problem in Yellowknife has always been about land tenure," Silke stated in an e-mail.

"Most of the shacks in question around Old Town were built in the 1950s and 1960s on un-surveyed waterfront land that later, in about 1970, became the jurisdiction of the GNWT. Old Town was a forgotten corner of Yellowknife … All development was being conducted in new suburbs and in the downtown area or School Draw … There was little political interest in addressing land ownership in Old Town so people continued to live in them."

In 1975, the city's planning department began to address what was considered an 'eyesore' to the neighbourhood, Silke stated.

A handful of waterfront shacks on Latham Island were torn down or relocated in the early 1990s because of development interests, Silke stated.

"Even just 10 years ago, (Larocque) shared the Peace River Flats waterfront with about four or five other small plywood shacks," he wrote.

"These were all torn down fairly recently, maybe in the last five years. They had aged and were probably not liveable. That's the problem with not having land tenure. Who wants to invest in upgrading or repairing your shack if you have no guarantee to stay? So your house becomes ever more shack-esque and it gets the ire of City hall as a eyesore. It's fate is sealed."

According to Humble, before the issue became a legal matter, those wanting to preserve the shack, such as Larocque's family, could do so by relocating it.

"We'd have no problem with that but according to our policy it can't stay where it is," said Humble.