Preston home sits perched on edge of construction zone
CAMBRIDGE — The curious look up from their chocolate-dipped cones, purchased from the Dairy Queen directly across King Street, and point at the 81-year-old house that seems to be dripping off the edge of a dug-out cliff in the middle of a bustling construction zone.
“The basic comment we get is, ‘Is it going to fall down?’ It’s been on Facebook. It’s funny. But, uh, it is what it is,” says owner Bruce Langlade.
“Because it sits on a hill, it’s so obvious to everyone who drives by.” And, no, it’s not going to fall down. That’s what Langlade, a 69-year-old painter who retired just last week, wants all the pausing patrons of the Tim Hortons next door to know as they gaze at his home of 20 years while rolling up their rims.
As the Region of Waterloo continues its multimillion-dollar widening and improvement from this King and Eagle corner to Shantz Hill, the house at 329 King St. E. stands on firm ground even after its raised front yard and hedge were dug out nearly a month ago.
“This is all gravel bedrock here,” said Langlade, who put an addition on the house years ago. “We didn’t have to feel too concerned about it giving way.”
And his three front-porch pillars, each with a Canadian flag, sit on boulders, he assured the region. And this project, despite all the noisy night crews and blasted beep-beepbeeping of reversing trucks, is a blessing.
Finally, the old retaining wall to his property is out. The crumbling concrete steps up to his elevated front yard are gone. The region and its contractor are replacing it all. New steps. New wall.
“I’ve known about this since 2013,” Langlade said. “We knew it was coming. We knew the change was needed in this corner. So you’ve got to accept the fact that things are going to happen.” Reality accepted, welcomed even. The region bought a slanted slice of his property, taking about three metres from the coffee-shop side of the home, down to about
two metres on the opposite side which bumps into a Baptist church.
“When they came along with this, I thought, ‘Oh, my goodness! I’m going to enjoy this. They’re going to build me a new wall and steps going up. And the steps they’re putting in are decorative steps. They’re not just poured concrete.”
Of course, Langlade got compensation. It was acceptable, he said. On the whole, the region has been very reasonable, he added. If he has an issue, it is dealt with quickly.
When the work is complete in front of the home, by mid-August the region says, Langlade expects to have about 3.5 metres from the edge of his front porch and about six metres leading toward the edge of the Timmies parking lot.
The worst of it — like when a power jackhammer dug out the old coffee shop sign’s concrete base — may be over. Langlade and wife Marie are confident the front of their property, which has a back driveway off another street, will look magnificent.
Langlade is kicking off his retirement by kicking back and watching the region’s contractor rebuild his front yard. Nice work if you can get it.
“I’m just getting ready to sit back with my coffee in the mornings and watch them dig and see them finish,” he said. “Then, I’ll be happy out there in the quiet.”