Long before complaints of bandwidth and Internet speeds, Yukoners could likely be heard beefing about the cost of each word they sent out by telegraph.

That’s according to Keith Halliday, chair of the MacBride Museum of Yukon History.

In a presentation to council Monday evening, Halliday brought forward the museum’s proposal for a renovation to the telegraph office that would open one of the city’s oldest buildings to the public again.

The museum is seeking $20,000 from the city’s heritage restoration incentive for the estimated $40,000 to $50,000 renovation.

In stressing the history of the telegraph office, Halliday went back to the early 1900s, where it was a hub for communication to the Outside.

The building has remained on its original site at Front and Steele streets since it was built in 1900.

“The site is a historic component of the nationally significant Ashcroft to Dawson Telegraph line that was used for communications during the Klondike Gold Rush. The line gave Whitehorse a near-instantaneous link to the rest of the country and helped to develop the transportation and mercantile industry in the territory.”

Used for the telegraph service until the 1920s, it went on to house a number of residents over the years ranging from apartments to headquarters for scouting, the original site of MacBride and more.

Given its uses over the years that saw walls be put up and taken down, depending on its tenant, Halliday said officials aren’t even sure the inside of the telegraph office could be replicated because there are too many unknowns on what the inside was like.

The renovations will bring the building up to National Building Code and fire code standards so it can be open to the public again.

Halliday noted interpretive panels explaining the history of the building may be installed, and there’s potential for the building to be used for museum events.

Halliday stressed museum officials are well aware of the conditions around the heritage incentive, which provides funding for such projects, though successful applicants can only receive funding once every 10 years.

The museum is also prepared to almost match the city’s funding, putting in $19,250 it has saved for the project as well as $3,750 the Yukon government has approved for the work.

“We have skin in the game as well,” Halliday said.

But one councillor wondered why the Yukon government isn’t coughing up more.

During council discussion on the proposal, Coun. Dave Stockdale stated his concern that the city would put in $20,000 while the government had approved less than $4,000.

“This is lopsided, and I’d like to know why it’s (the government’s amount) so low,” he said.

He questioned Halliday on whether the museum had sought funding from the territory’s Community Development Fund for the work.

Halliday noted that while the museum has benefited from the fund for other projects, it wasn’t sought for this one.

Other council members stressed the importance of the building’s history, with Coun. Jocelyn Curteanu pointing out that it was an important structure related to the Gold Rush era.

Coun. Kirk Cameron, meanwhile, recalled a recent trip to Charlottetown, where the city has invested in preserving many of its historical buildings. He noted his hope the City of Whitehorse will take a similar focus with its historic structures.

While the telegraph office received designation as a municipal historic site in 2011, Halliday explained work was done to stabilize the building to ensure it didn’t fall down, though the resources just weren’t there to bring it up to code.

With the assistance of the heritage incentive, Halliday said the museum will have the funding to do that work now.

If the funding is approved, work would be done over the winter months, he said.

Council will vote on whether to approve the funding next week.