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Algocen Realty Holdings Ltd. was incorporated in
1973 to take over the Real Estate Division and soon began developing 45
acres of downtown waterfront property in Sault Ste. Marie owned by ACR.
Station Mall was opened October 31, 1973 just in time for its climate
controlled mall style shopping centre to be enjoyed by customers shopping
at Simpson-Sears or Dominion Stores along with 40 other stores. Later,
in July 1974 Holiday Inns of Canada Ltd. opened a 200 room hotel with
convention facilities for 500 opened, and in 1975 a six story office building
Station Tower was opened on the site. In May 1978, Station
49, a senior citizens 101 apartment building was opened next to
the mall, and the mall itself was expanded in 1981 and again in 1989-90. Another indoor mall AlgoCentre was built in Elliot Lake including department and food stores along with a hotel and office complex the last of which was opened in August 1980. The closure of some uranium mines in 1990 and 1992 caused difficulties for the mall and the community as well since there was little other employment. The last mine closed in July 1996. It became a retirement community.
Algoma Central's land holdings in the Algoma region of 850,000 acres, including mineral and timber rights, were turned over to Algocen Realty Holdings. In addition to timber harvesting and mineral leases, there were over 700 recreational-land leases by 1988 and others for hydro-electric power generation and transmission line corridors. This land was all sold off in 1997. ACR Delaware Inc. was created in 1980 as a holding
company for investments made in the United States. An even shorter sideline was the Algocen Homes Division established in 1976 to sell factory built homes and industrial units in Northern Ontario. Aside from some structures built in Marathon, the ACR crew lodge (bunkhouse) for 25 people in Hawk Junction was about all they did. Being only modestly profitable, it ceased operating in 1977. Algocen Mines Ltd. was created in 1982 to hold a mining lease on silica-kaolin deposits north of Hearst. It was closed down in 1993. Environmental cleanups took place at three former mine sites as well as the former tie-treating site.
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