09-06-2018, 08:44 AM
https://www.therecord.com/news-story/887...r-oneroof/
"The committee heard two versions of the heritage value of the homes. A report prepared for the developer argued that the homes had not particular merit and are similar to others in the Victoria Park heritage district. The city's Official Plan calls for greater density and intensification along Queen Street South, the report says, adding that other highrises surround the heritage homes.
But Leon Bensason, Kitchener's co-ordinator of heritage planning, said in his report to the committee that the homes are in fair to good condition and "are two surviving examples of a declining number of late 19th-century buildings located on Queen Street South" within the heritage district.
But most of the buildings in the Victoria Park heritage district that have been demolished have been along Queen Street, Bensason said. "Without careful planning, visual evidence that this is one of the earliest and most historic streets in the city could decline," the report says. Allowing the demolitions to go ahead could set a precedent for the loss of more homes along Queen, he said."
So even heritage admits there's nothing special about these houses, just that if you don't keep them, then we would have a downtown where people have homes, instead of a downtown where we remember that people with money can help to keep prices up for everyone.
"The committee heard two versions of the heritage value of the homes. A report prepared for the developer argued that the homes had not particular merit and are similar to others in the Victoria Park heritage district. The city's Official Plan calls for greater density and intensification along Queen Street South, the report says, adding that other highrises surround the heritage homes.
But Leon Bensason, Kitchener's co-ordinator of heritage planning, said in his report to the committee that the homes are in fair to good condition and "are two surviving examples of a declining number of late 19th-century buildings located on Queen Street South" within the heritage district.
But most of the buildings in the Victoria Park heritage district that have been demolished have been along Queen Street, Bensason said. "Without careful planning, visual evidence that this is one of the earliest and most historic streets in the city could decline," the report says. Allowing the demolitions to go ahead could set a precedent for the loss of more homes along Queen, he said."
So even heritage admits there's nothing special about these houses, just that if you don't keep them, then we would have a downtown where people have homes, instead of a downtown where we remember that people with money can help to keep prices up for everyone.