Planning committee recommends razing former Pearson home
The Ugandan High Commission should be allowed to demolish the former Sandy Hill home of Lester B. Pearson and construct a new office building, the planning committee decided Tuesday.
The committee, in a 9-1-vote, reversed a decision by the builtheritage subcommittee, whose members worried that by allowing demolition of 231 Cobourg St., the city would send the wrong message to owners of aging buildings in heritage districts. The built-heritage subcommittee, made up of councillors and citizens with heritage experience, voted 5-2 against demolition earlier this month.
On Tuesday, councillors saw little point holding up redevelopment on a property where the twostorey building is falling apart.
The high commission wants to replace it with a three-storey building designed by Ten-2-Four Architecture.
Pearson lived in the building between 1955 and 1958 when he was minister of external affairs. He won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1957.
Chad Rollins, president of the Action Sandy Hill community association, asked the planning committee to follow the subcommittee’s recommendation and block the demolition. He unveiled a report by the auditor general in Uganda that says a consultant in 2013 recommended remedial work to the internal systems and the removal of trees to protect the building’s foundation, since the trees were sucking water out of the ground. By 2015, the work hadn’t been completed, even though $1 million was made available for the fixes.
But Robert Martin, the consultant who completed the heritage assessment for the high commission, said he doesn’t think the money was earmarked for a building stabilization program.
There are foundation problems, the walls are cracking and there’s mould everywhere.
“The building is literally selfdestructing,” Martin said.
David Jeanes, president of Heritage Ottawa, called on the Ugandan government to respect Canada’s heritage and asked Ottawa city councillors to save the building. The Wilbrod/Laurier heritage conservation district’s importance is tied to an association with former prime ministers, Jeanes said.
However, the professional assessments by the high commission’s consultants, combined with an independent review commissioned by the city, were too convincing for councillors to ignore. The heritage value of the building isn’t enough to justify spending huge amounts for major repairs, the studies suggest.
On top of that, the city’s own heritage experts have recommended council approve the high commission’s demolition and development plan.
Council will make a final deci- sion on May 9.
COUNCILLOR SETTLES FOR PEDESTRIAN CROSSING ON LESTER ROAD
Coun. Diane Deans will settle for a pedestrian crossing at Lester Road and Meandering Way, where a new development is planned.
Deans wanted a traffic signal at the intersection in her Gloucester-Southgate ward, but traffic statistics don’t support installing one. Valecraft Homes plans to build 96 town houses and 60 stacked apartments at 195 Meandering Brook Dr. The company once considered a signalized intersection but it has since decreased the density. As part of a deal with the city, Valecraft agreed to pay $45,000 to help build a “pedestrian refuge” median on Lester Road, a bus pad on the south side of Lester Road and a pedestrian crossover.