Acorn

From the President's Pen: The Heritage War on Property Rights.

I have pondered why Mayor Ford completely ignored the burning of the Empress / Edison Hotel, and suspect that it has something to do with the hard right view of property rights, where squads of bike-riding pinko heritage activists want to stop development and stand in the way of economic progress. It is a common attitude;  I mentioned last week a letter to the editor from the Simcoe County Branch regarding their campaign to list the Wauchope residence; now the owner has responded in the letters to the editor: "Government must stay out of the business of private properties. We can do anything we want with our own personal property as long as it does not pollute the land or the air." Now I am thrilled that Gord and Brenda have become such staunch environmentalists, so concerned about pollution. But I must point out that municipal government's biggest role is the business of private property, its use, its density, its services and yes, Gord and Brenda, its heritage. Thirty years ago you would have complained bitterly if the government insisted that you fix your septic system; now you take environmental controls seriously. Heritage is no different, it is just a little bit behind in North America.  Gord and Brenda write of their house: "It is not "the property of the community as a whole". It is our home. It should not be controlled, changed or compromised by council members, members of the heritage committee or the architectural conservancy." I am sorry, but you cannot turn your house into a brothel, nor can you take out the stairs and install zip lines. There are rules and controls. The Heritage Act is one of them; we can't let citizens and politicians forget that. We have to put conserve back into the conservative agenda, instead of ceding it to the property rights crazies. Have a comment? Leave it here

In A Nutshell...

Heritage Activists Block Highways, Hold Up Traffic

I can see the letters to the editor: "what right do they have to block our highways for heritage houses? Knock them down!" The listed home in Ridgetown was described in the register: "“This residence is a great example of a vernacular style home made in Ridgetown at the turn of the century. It illustrates the style and size of house that the middle class would have enjoyed."

One could rant that moving houses is not a good thing, but everyone seems to be happy that it is being saved, and Marlee of the ACO calls it good news, so I won't. More in the Chatham Kent Daily Post.

Catherine Nasmith Says Never Give Up, Never Give In

Past President Catherine Nasmith is not a quitter. She gets all Churchillian in an editorial in Built Heritage News:

Never give in. Never give in. Never, never, never, never--in nothing, great or small, large or petty--never give in, except to convictions of honor and good sense. Never yield to force. Never yield to the apparently overwhelming might of the enemy.

 She continues under her own steam:

The fight to protect the views of Queen's Park is at a dark depressing moment now, with the Premier continuing to abdicate responsibility, hiding behind the cloak of politesse for municipal process, "respect for the people of Toronto and the decisions of duly elected politicians". Those politicians did everything they could in the absence of provincial support. Now is the time to Never Give Up, Never Give In....

 

At this stage, McGuinty is still playing games with the dignity of the most important building in Ontario, the seat of our democracy. He has the ability to pass a bill to prevent this development. Rosario Marchese, has a private members bill that he could bring forward for debate, or McGuinty could introduce a government bill. 

Please call, email, or write your MPP to urge them to act now before it is too late. And don't let them snow you with nonsense about Toronto citizens having spoken, or the court decision is final. Ask them to stop this development, and start working with the City of Toronto to stop further damage. It is time for the "After you Alphonse" between the two levels of government to end.

Last-Minute Call For Designation of Hamilton Federal Building

In Hamilton, Developer Darko Vranich used the historic Federal building to store propane tanks, carpets, mattresses and wooden furniture. What could possibly go wrong? Fortunately, the town charged him with breaching fire regulations. Now, more conventionally, he has applied for a demolition permit for the building, to replace it with a 20 storey condo. (it is quite a handsome building that would make a lovely conversion, and the great bas-relief sculptures by artist Elizabeth Holbrook could be preserved in place)

The Heritage Committee has unanimously voted to call for designation. Mr. Vranick has owned it since 2004; I would love to know why they waited until the demolition permit was applied for to act. But that appears to be the trend, and it gives heritage a bad name.

We have to identify those buildings we want to save, list them and designate them early, before they deteriorate and before they get filled with propane tanks and mattresses and all the letters to the editor say "get rid of that abandoned eyesore."

Feds Reject ThisPlaceMatters.ca At 11th Hour

I had been going back and forth with the Canadian Interactive Fund since last summer with our application for funding; at the last Council meeting I announced that we had it in the bag, showing what looked pretty much like the draft of a contract, fifteen pages of final details, spreadsheets and cash flow analyses. Then last Monday our contact called and asked if the site was live. On Wednesday she asked if I could join a conference call; on Friday I joined the call with what I think were senior Canadian Heritage Ministry bureaucrats, who told me that a) they approved more projects than they had money for, and b) since our site was already live, they were not really supporting technology per se, but were supporting staff and promotion, which really wasn't their mandate.

Nothing had changed since July 31 when we submitted our application, other than a whole lot of time spent by me, our summer student Shannon Clayton and my friend Robert Ouellette to fill out their applications. At first I thought it might be a political decision; the ACO did embarrass the Federal Government a bit with our Brantford battle. But we are probably too small fry to raise interdepartmental notice.

But it is another teachable moment, more evidence that we have to wean ourselves off government operating grants and improve our fundraising capacity so that we can stand on our own feet and not waste six months like we just did.

From the President's Pen: Lessons From The Empress/ Edison Hotel

Preserving our heritage buildings is, literally, a burning issue. Over the past two weeks we have been discussing strategies to create a better climate for preservation. We need an arsenal of carrots, to encourage it, and sticks, to discourage events like the recent fire. The ACO wants to open discussion on the following approaches:

Provide a significant reduction in the rate of taxation for restored heritage buildings.

Woodcliffe President Paul Oberman notes that this will not necessarily lead to a loss in revenue for the government and may actually lead to an increase in revenue, as the assessment and income rises as a result of the improvements. He told the National Post: "Offer annual rebates to buildings that are kept in exemplary condition and rents would increase, property values would spike and the city would reap more property taxes."

On Building Downtown: They Had it Right in 1974

Scan from my copy of "On Building Downtown"

In 1974 a group of young, relatively unknown architects and planners (George Baird, Roger Du Toit, Robert Hill, Bruce Kuwabara, Alan Littlewood, Donald McKay, Stephen McLaughlin, Belinda Sugarman and John van Nostrand) wrote On Building Downtown. A major issue for them: Retain existing and create new public views in and out of the core area. They wrote:

"At one time in Toronto history, civic institutions constituted the prominent features of the City skyline. In a panoramic view of the city, spires of cathedrals, towers of the Town Hall and Fire Halls, turrets of university buildings gave significant public articulation to the skyline. Today, the Toronto skyline is one almost exclusively dominated by the forms and images of private enterprise- the point block office tower and large-scale, roof mounted lighted signs of private business." (this was long before the condo boom)

They proposed that the once-public nature of the skyline be strengthened again. "not only should important existing public views in and out of the Core Area be maintained, and new public views created; the core area skyline itself should again be made part of the Public Realm." So much for civic governments with vision; that's so 37 years ago. The last chance to preserve the view of Queens Park was lost last week, and the lesson is clear: we need to bring back the concept of the public realm, the city that belongs to the people. We need to protect those public views that we cherish, and put them back into the bylaws before this happens again.

Mell Chapple 1945- 2011

Mell Chapple's friends at the Pier Group in Port Hope write:

"Mell was an educator, a heritage activist, independent business owner, research
consultant, project manager and above all, a true friend who not only loved life
and her family but loved the challenges of defending Heritage.

Mell was an accomplished professional. She was
especially proud of her involvement with the Stephen Lewis Foundation;
Architectural Conservancy of Ontario both locally and as a Provincial
Conference organizer; ICOMOS Canada committee member; and Past Chair of
Port Hope LACAC. She was an educator, in the Kawartha Pine Ridge District
School Board in Special Education; a researcher with the Ontario Ministry of
Culture and a founding member of Heritage Ontario.

Mell was a recipient of the Volunteer Service Award, Town of Port Hope;
Award of Appreciation, Solicitor General and Minister of Correctional
Services; Volunteer Award, Province of Ontario; and Outstanding Service
Award, Ontario Ministry of Culture and Communication. Most recently the
Port Hope Branch of the ACO bestowed on her the Marion Garland Heritage
Award, which honours preservation and restoration achievements in Port Hope.

Mell has made a tremendous impact on the heritage fabric of Port Hope and
was a true credit to her friend and mentor, the late A.K. Sculthorpe.

Mell was far more than that to us, she was an inspiration and a friend - she will
be dearly missed by all of us who had the privilege to call her our friend."

In A Nutshell... What is the President's Circle?

What is the President's Circle?

 

A number of people have asked "who are those people in the right hand column and why are they there?" They are members of our new President's Circle, an initiative started by Past President Catherine Nasmith. She explains: 

 

"The President's Circle was created as a way of recognizing special friends of the ACO, people who provide support. assistance and advice to the ACO but who are not on the executive, people we have turned to or will turn to for advice in advancing our work. 

 

For example we might include Circle members in meetings with senior government officials, have them lend their names in support of specific projects or open doors. 

 

Members are nominated by the President and the two most recent Past Presidents."

I was recently at the first gathering of the President's Circle, turning to them for advice on an issue. We got it in spades.

Lloyd Alter in Peterborough Next Tuesday

I am presenting to the Peterborough branch of the ACO next Tuesday, 25 January, at Sadlier House, 751 George Street North.

How To Respond to the Property Rights Argument

In Innisfil, the McConkey/Wauchope house is under threat of development and the owners don't want it placed in the Heritage Registry. Barbara Love of the Simcoe County Branch of the ACO writes a letter to the local paper that lays out the case for listing it, even if it is against the wishes of the owner. More here.

From the President's Pen: Empress/Edison Hotel Dominates News

The story of the burning of the Empress/Edison Hotel has been playing out in the media: The history of the property and its long decline through demolition by neglect, through to its final death by heritage lightning, perhaps at the hands of a "person of interest." So far, no surprises, just the usual stuff that happens all over the Province when a heritage building stands in the way of development.

What is surprising is that for a change, people seem to care. I have never seen such coverage; There have been editorials, lengthy stories, photo essays in both the Star and Globe on Saturday showing other buildings in need of protection and resolution. Even editorial cartoons! Past President Catherine Nasmith and I have been doing interviews nonstop.

What is also surprising is the absence of our new Mayor. Mel Lastman would have been on site; heck, he might have called in the army. David Miller would have been there with a broom. But not a peep from Rob Ford.

We have been talking all week to developers, lawyers, planners and architects about what we can learn from this event, how we can capitalize on the interest in Heritage and what recommendations we can make so that this doesn't keep happening. I hope there is someone at City Hall who is interested in listening to them.