The City of Brantford today (8th of June) initiated the wholesale demolition of forty-one Upper Canada-era structures in its downtown:

Ontario city to demolish historic street, despite Ottawa’s objection (National Post)

Dear Minister,

I’ll keep this brief as I know you’re already well aware of what’s happening in Brantford, but I felt I’d be remiss if I didn’t add my voice to the group of people who desperately wish to see Brantford’s downtown renovated and repurposed instead of demolished.

Brantford’s downtown is among the most historic and unique in Canada, as you know. These are buildings that tell a vital part of Canada’s story, yet Brantford’s Council has never looked at creative solutions to the issue of downtown’s revitalization, and have only favoured the demolition plan.

This is an emergency. Demolition work has already begun. The only vague plan that exists for what will replace these 41 pieces of history is a joint YMCA/Laurier community centre. There are early renderings available for this building, and they are heartless and soulless compared to what they are replacing. By cutting out the retail and historic core of downtown Brantford, the city will be cutting itself off at the knees, and will stagnate. This is a plan that hundreds of American cities have followed through on since the 50s and 60s, and the end result is always the same: stagnation. This era of urban planning is over. Brantford is dooming itself for a century with this ill-advised act.

Brantford is using Federal stimulus money to pay for the demolition of historic buildings. There is an online group and petition of thousands of people who believe this is simply wrong, and I’m sure these groups would be even larger if Brantford’s issues were more widely discussed. As it is, the protesters yesterday were constantly running across citizens who had no idea what Council was planning for the downtown.

The buildings along Colborne were described by Council and by local papers as being “decrepit”, although a city-funded report states that most are, in fact, in “good” condition.

The revitalization of these buildings would provide hundreds of jobs, and since stimulus money is already earmarked this work could begin immediately. The demolition of these buildings, however, funnels the stimulus money largely into the pockets of a single wrecking firm – AIM Environmental. One could argue that this does little to help the local economy of Brantford, which is, or should be, the mandate of all stimulus funds.

Council also argues that this work must be done now because of stimulus funding deadlines. This deadline, however, has been extended by the Federal government by a full year.

The Mayor of Brantford is quoted as saying, and I paraphrase, that the worst thing Brantford could have right now is a solid plan. This is his major argument for moving forward so quickly with demolition. I have to wonder if his electorate agrees with this assessment of Brantford’s situation, although my guess is most don’t fully understand what’s happening because, as said once by Councillor McCreary, “there has not been a free flow of information to certain councillors and, therefore, the public”.

If Council feels it is appropriate to move forward with this plan without the full understanding of the city it affects, it’s my opinion that they do not understand the gravity of what they are suggesting. Though some will argue that Brantford still has a wealth of historic structures within its borders, I argue that without the context provided by its historic downtown these structures will lose much of their meaning, and future Councils won’t hesitate to take them down, as well. There is precedent all over the Rust Belt of this, as well.

Please, Minister, let’s take a harder road on this in Brantford. The high road. It’s not the politically easy decision to make, but it’s the right one. Issue, if you still can, a stop work order on this demolition. The city of Brantford has no idea how much of its history and heart it will be losing by moving forward with this plan.

A significant part of Upper Canadian culture and history has been allowed, under municipal care, to fade over the past 40 years, and the Province of Ontario and the Federal Government need to step in immediately before a tragedy here takes place.

Thanks for your time, Minister, and your continued hard work serving the Province.

Thanks also to the members of Brantford Council for their time and hard work. Being an elected official is sometimes a thankless, and always a stressful, job, and many on council have been endlessly helpful and forthcoming in this. In no way are my suggestions and criticisms – here and elsewhere – intended to be personal attacks.

Regards,

Nick Warzin

http://www.brantnews.com/news.cfm?page=news&section=read&articleId=7157

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2010/03/the-greenest-building-is-the-one-already-standing.php

I haven't finished the east side of the street yet, but I've used Photoshop's handy "Export as Zoomify" feature to make an easily navigable user interface. Give it a shot:

http://nickwarzin.com/blog/custom/colborne.html

I already want to print this BIG... 10" high, by 130" long? Yes. I'm a little crazy.

Here's a depressing before-and-after to top off your Monday evening:

The Gooderham/Flatiron Building in its proper context, with a dense wedge of city behind it and an array of Confederation-era buildings on both sides of Front/Wellington. See under the cut for some "after" shots from the 1960s.

Here's that same "wedge" of city reduced to serving as a hang-out for autos. You may notice some of the buildings along the south Front are sitting vacant.

Around the time of this photo, Toronto city councillors were suggesting that the entire row be demolished to make way for more parking. They called it revitalization. This is a common refrain. Can you picture what this area would be like without that row of buildings?

Here's the money shot, taken after a few more years of revitalization:

This photo is frankly heartbreaking to me, but then I'm a nerd. I'm also glad the area (and the rest of the city) hasn't fallen into complete ruin, though some of the uninspiring architecture that has replaced historic gems leaves much wanting.

I don't like to end on a down note; here's a song.

BONNIE TYLER - TOTAL ECLIPSE OF THE HEART
Uploaded by hushhush112. - See the latest featured music videos.

Dear Brantford City Council, et al,

My name is Nick, and I love Brantford, Ontario. I visit it, and many cities in Southern Ontario, as often as I can. I appreciate its unique character, its deep history, its rich architecture. I visit its cafes and its restaurants, and I walk its streets. I am also, like many, saddened when I pass through its once glorious downtown. An area that contained busy shops, bustling streets and its own streetcar network has been reduced by 20^th century economic trends to a shadow of what it once was. Here’s a photo of a very different time:

It has recently come to my attention that the Corporation of the City of Brantford plans on demolishing a large chunk of this history. I’m not sure when this is planned to happen, but I know that it’s soon, and I know that there are many within Brantford and without who would consider this a grave mistake. The hard lessons taught to us by other similarly afflicted municipalities seem to bear this out.

All of us in Ontario have seen Brantford’s struggles over the past few decades, and we’ve all seen the impact these struggles have had on your downtown. Underestimating how much of your history and how much of your character is trapped in those downtown structures is a common mistake among post-industrial municipalities, but I urge you not to make that same mistake with Brantford. Our understanding of how cities work is growing deeper by the day in the 21^st century. To resort to brutish 1960’s ideas when we know there are better solutions available would be a travesty, and you would be doing the people of Brantford and of Ontario, present and future, a great disservice.

Please re-think this course of action. With some thought and care, your downtown could be one of the most varied and colourful in southern Ontario. This is a promise.

Engage your populace. Engage your local businesses. Engage brilliant minds across the province. Make finding a solution to Brantford’s downtown a contest – Brantford could be at the forefront of a new way of municipal thinking. Do what it takes to make this happen, but do not, do not, follow this knee-jerk course of action. You are shooting your beautiful city in the foot, and Brantford will never recover. You are making the entire province and its history poorer with your actions.

Here are some helpful resources and recent press coverage:

A definition of adaptive reuse

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adaptive_reuse

Memo to Brantford: Hamilton Heritage Demolition 101

http://www.raisethehammer.org/article/1025/memo_to_brantford:_hamilton_heritage_demolition_101

Urban Destruction in the Heart of Brantford, Ontario

http://www.raisethehammer.org/article/1019/urban_destruction_in_the_heart_of_brantford_ontario

Hume: Brantford will live to regret the tragedy of edifice wrecks

http://www.thestar.com/news/ontario/article/765606--hume-brantford-will-live-to-regret-the-tragedy-of-edifice-wrecks

Thank you very much for listening. I hope there is still time to reconsider these decisions. Please engage your populace. Please engage local businesses. Please ask the advice of those around you: planners in Hamilton, Waterloo, Kitchener and Toronto have been through this already and would be more than happy to work together with you towards a solution. Also, please click on the “adaptive reuse” link I provided, and research the concept further. There are ways of building community centres in downtowns while maintaining current structures these days. We know how to do this now. We’ve learned from our 20^th century mistakes. Please let smart people have a peek at this problem and figure it out.

With all respect,

Nick Warzin.

Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about the Lyric Theatre - Raise the Hammer

The Lyric/Century Theatre, before:

The Lyric/Century Theatre, after:

On behalf of the Hon. Ken Dryden, Member of Parliament for York Centre, thank you for your letter regarding the demolition of Buildings 55 and 58.

For your records, please find enclosed a copy of Mr. Dryden’s letter (which I've pasted below -NW) to Minister MacKay urging the minister to reconsider the proposed demolition.

Sincerely,

Carlene Variyan
Special Assistant
Office of the Hon. Ken Dryden, P.C., M.P.
Member of Parliament for York Centre
National Outreach Advisor, Poverty & Working Families

November 16, 2009

Hon. Peter MacKay, P.C., M.P.
Minister of National Defence
National Defence Headquarters
Major-General George R. Pearkes Building
101 Colonel By Drive
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0K2

Dear Minister MacKay,

Re: Downsview Air Force Base Hangars – Buildings 55 and 58

CFB Downsview and Parc Downsview Park are both situated in the riding I represent, York Centre. It has been brought to my attention that Buildings 55 and 58 at CFB Downsview have been slated for demolition by the Department of National Defence.

I have also been made aware that a number of organizations and individuals associated with the designation, maintenance and sustainability of heritage buildings have contacted you to express their opposition to the demolition of these buildings. I would like to add my voice to theirs.

As you know, these two buildings are some of the last structures remaining that represent the valuable contribution of CFB Downsview during the Second World War. They were part of a major aircraft production facility, but they are also part of the story and pride of the community. This is one of the two great sites of the aircraft industry in Canada, including where a number of planes that you and I have flown on in remote parts of the world (Dash 7s etc.) were built.

It is for good reason that in 1992 the hangars were designated as recognized heritage buildings by the federal government.

I know that it is often difficult to find new purposes for old structures. I also know that we have a responsibility to try, and try again. From what I am told, it is not for any compelling new use on the site that DND has decided to demolish the buildings. And we are both aware of instances at one moment where there isn't an opportunity to restore a particular building, only later, after it has been demolished, for that opportunity to be there. If it is true that there is no overwhelming reason now to demolish the buildings, I would suggest not demolishing them.

I hope that you will reconsider the Department’s decision to demolish these two historic structures and explore other opportunities for their use.

Thank you.

Sincerely,

Ken Dryden

Dryden.K@parl.gc.ca's responsed on November 16, 2009

Dear Office of the Minister of National Defence:

It has come to my attention, and to the attention of many concerned individuals in the Toronto area, that Downsview Airport’s WWII-vintage hangars are currently slated for demolition. These are structures that are admired not only for their raw, utilitarian architecture, but also for their important role in Canadian history. As Parc Downsview Park continues to develop the area and draw civilian interests to the area, I see demolishing these structures not as a step forward towards a modern, living Downsview Park, but more as a missed opportunity. I notice that others, such as Lloyd Alter of the Architectural Conservancy of Ontario, see the situation similarly.

I realize that during times of economic hardship finding room on budgets for such creative projects can be difficult, but it seems to me that a Toronto (and an Ontario, and a Canada) of the 21^st century is one that always explores the green adaptive reuse of old structures first, even in situations where it might be politically uncomplicated to demolish before looking into such recommendations. The hangars may be on DND land, but since Downsview Park is increasingly used for local community needs (school programs, camps, parklands) it’s vital to involve the community in any discussion regarding the future of its land and its buildings.

What I ask is this: that the Federally-recognized Heritage hangars at Toronto/Downsview Airport be studied for a possible civilian adaptive reuse, and that this process be constrained to a path that similarly-recognized structures on Provincial and Municipal land would have to take, involving draft proposals and public consultation.

As a Canadian who is endlessly proud of his country’s heritage, and as a descendant of Canadian Forces servicemen who lived and served for years at CFB Downsview, I feel taking another look at this is very important.

Thank you for your time.

Regards,

Nick Warzin