Bars don’t make cut for heritage building list

City council may be about to adopt a registry of 100 buildings in Peterborough that qualify for heritage designations – but the list doesn’t include either the Pig ’s Ear or the Black Horse.

Demolition permits have already been issued for those two historic bars downtown, so for those buildings it’s too late.

But a new city staff report says it’s not too late for many other buildings in the downtown and elsewhere in the city.

The report recommends the County Courthouse, St. Paul’s Presbyterian Church, the Peterborough Armoury and Quaker Oats for inclusion on the registry.

Although the registry wouldn’t give them full protection from the wrecking ball, it would impose a 60-day waiting period for any owner who’d like to apply for a demolition permit – enough time for council to start the heritage designation process.

In January, Parkview Homes bought the Pig’s Ear Tavern with a plan to demolish it and put up a five-storey apartment building.

The owner of Parkview Homes, Paul Dietrich, was also interested in buying the Black Horse Pub; he wanted to tear it down and put up an apartment building there, too.

Although he was able to obtain demolition permits for both buildings, the deal to purchase the Black Horse eventually fell through.

The Black Horse is back on the market now, but the staff report says it still has a demolition permit attached to it. That means a buyer would have the option to tear it down without having to apply for a permit.

Citizens packed council chambers in March to speak to council about saving the two historic bars, and now city staff says it’s about time council put some sort of protection on historically significant buildings that lack heritage designations.

On Monday, councillors will hear a staff presentation about the importance of conserving old buildings. Then councillors will be asked to adopt the proposed registry.

Council had the option of putting a heritage designation on the Pig’s Ear and The Black Horse, in March, but they voted against it.

Instead, council asked city staff to work with Parkview Homes toward keeping some of the heritage features from the old buildings an incorporating them in the new ones.

The city staff report says that city staff later asked Parkview Homes to get a structural engineering report on whether demolition of the two bars would harm the Morrow Building.

The Pig’s Ear and Black Horse are attached on either side to the elaborately preserved Morrow Building, which has a heritage designation.

Although Dietrich didn’t buy the Black Horse, he never said whether he still intends to carry out his plan for the Pig’s Ear (which closed in April, after more than 150 years in business).

If demolition doesn’t proceed for either The Black Horse or Pig ’s Ear, the staff report says council may add both to the registry to place a heritage designation on them. Don’t forget to check The

Examiner’s website on Monday for livestreaming, blogging and tweets from the meeting. It begins at 6:30 p.m.