Centretown house OK'd for demolition

The City of Ottawa has wrapped up an exhaustive inventory of vacant heritage buildings, but that won't save one such structure in Centretown from the wrecking ball.

The boarded-up,brick house at 234 O'Connor St. has sat vacant since a fire in 2005. It was constructed between 1879 and 1901, and sits within the Centretownheritage conservation district.

Its current owner, Gemstone Developments, applied to demolish the building.

After putting off a decision last fall, the city's planning committee decided Tuesday to allow the houseto be torn down, provided the owner builds and maintains a temporary public parketteuntil it redevelopsthe site.

Couns.JeffLeiperandTobiNussbaum, who chairs the city's built heritage subcommittee,dissented.

Staff objected to demolition

City staff had advised against demolition afterheritage masonry experts concludedthe building could be repaired and preserved. Neither Heritage Ottawa nor the councillor for Somerset ward, Catherine McKenney, supporteddemolition.

At some point we just have to say, enough.- Coun. Catherine McKenney

"At some pointwe just have to say, enough.It's not okay to lose heritage structures and it's not okay to leave our neighbourhoods with gaps in our streetscapes,interrupted by empty parking lots," saidMcKenney.

She didn't blame the building's current ownerfor letting the house fall into disrepair, but a previousowner.

The demolition still needs the approval of full city council.

Heritage inventory complete

The vote came as city staff updated the committee on the completion of an inventory of vacant heritage sites.

The city has been issuing orders to landlordswho aren't keeping their buildings up to standard, according to Court Curry, Ottawa's manager in charge of heritage files.

The inventory was one of the tasks assigned to a heritage task forcestruck by Mayor Jim Watson in July 2016, partly in response to the long deterioration of Somerset House on Bank Street, and is part of an effort to avoid so-called "demolition by neglect."

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A report with more information about protecting heritage buildingswill go before the city's planning committee and built heritage subcommittee in May, said Curry.