24 April 2006
the claw at work:
- Demolition began 9:00 a. m. Saturday 16 January 06 promptly in spite of bitter north west winds & without the requisite environmental remediation as this was an issue of "public safety."
In spite of winter's chill, a goodly number of heritage folks came to witness and be interviewed by the local media. - First to be chewed up was not-- you guessed it --- the structurally unsafe east wall of the Phase 2 building portion but the most easily accessible from the parking lot from the Smyth residence/office -- the northwest corner of Phase 4 3 storey building.addition of the 1920's -- note 1900 building has rounded window arches whereas the later addition has slight elliptical arches in the decorative brickwork.
- The claw made short work of the facade of the 1920's designated structure until a halt was called at noon.
- per 1999 designation bylaw, the entire building facade was designated; per 05 Fedy structural review that detailed the difficulty of providing sufficient underground parking in any adaptive re-use proposal & hence recommended saving the facade only (cf. the Seagram Lofts in Waterloo-- where the exterior walls were retained and a brand-new structure was set in behind the walls); per Jan 06 hazardous materials abatement required: asbestos removal, lead gaskets & lead paint removal, fluorescent bulbs and ballasts; mould and water-damaged floor boards, and removal of the mysterious 12 barrels of unkown liquid!
- Rambling Rose is left wondering these questions: 1) how many local housewives tear their houses down in order to skip sprinc-cleaning tasks? and 2) which was cheaper: demolition or environmental remediation? and 3) has the tainted buck just been passed to the regional landfill site and how many years before this contamination penetrates the groundwater supply?
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