Waterloo Region Connected

Work has begun on renovating the former Budds store in Downtown.

http://www.cbc.ca/beta/news/canada/kitch...-1.4129614

Two restaurants on the main floor (no mention of anything for the basement). At what point does Downtown hit "peak eatery", I wonder? I think five or six new places have opened just since the beginning of the year.

(05-24-2017, 09:36 PM)panamaniac Wrote: [ -> ]Two restaurants on the main floor (no mention of anything for the basement).  At what point does Downtown hit "peak eatery", I wonder?  I think five or six new places have opened just since the beginning of the year.

My young grasshopper. There is no such thing as too many restaurants. Food is of the essence.

And it's one of the few storefront businesses that can't be replaced by an online competitor.

(05-24-2017, 07:00 PM)rangersfan Wrote: [ -> ]Work has begun on renovating the former Budds store in Downtown.
http://www.cbc.ca/beta/news/canada/kitch...-1.4129614

And there is now visible activity.

The 1970s (?) brick facade is coming down at the street level:
[attachment=3765]

Interior looks pretty promising, in all its unfinished glory:
[attachment=3766]

Waiting to see what's under the faux brick on the second floor.  I have no idea what this building used to look like!

Faux brick? Is that not the original cladding?

Wait, this building had a third storey that was demolished?

Very surprising. Cool picture though.

(05-30-2017, 10:41 PM)panamaniac Wrote: [ -> ]Faux brick?  Is that not the original cladding?

I doubt it.  Look at the top right of the photo, and you can see the "brick" next to the window has a smooth curve.  I don't think real brick does this -- this looks like some kind of vinyl (or similar) covering that is simulating brick.

That's not to say there isn't real brick underneath.

(05-31-2017, 10:43 AM)tomh009 Wrote: [ -> ]

(05-30-2017, 10:41 PM)panamaniac Wrote: [ -> ]Faux brick?  Is that not the original cladding?

I doubt it.  Look at the top right of the photo, and you can see the "brick" next to the window has a smooth curve.  I don't think real brick does this -- this looks like some kind of vinyl (or similar) covering that is simulating brick.

That's not to say there isn't real brick underneath.

No idea.  Because of the white colour, I was thinking it was an example of brick with a ceramic surface - it used to be not uncommon, but probably only in times well after the original construction of this building.

(05-31-2017, 10:47 AM)panamaniac Wrote: [ -> ]

(05-31-2017, 10:43 AM)tomh009 Wrote: [ -> ]I doubt it.  Look at the top right of the photo, and you can see the "brick" next to the window has a smooth curve.  I don't think real brick does this -- this looks like some kind of vinyl (or similar) covering that is simulating brick.

That's not to say there isn't real brick underneath.

No idea.  Because of the white colour, I was thinking it was an example of brick with a ceramic surface - it used to be not uncommon, but probably only in times well after the original construction of this building.

Some window posts have sharp corners (see the one to the left) some have rounded.  So it doesn't look real to me.  We'll find out soon enough, though.

(05-31-2017, 10:43 AM)tomh009 Wrote: [ -> ]

(05-30-2017, 10:41 PM)panamaniac Wrote: [ -> ]Faux brick?  Is that not the original cladding?

I doubt it.  Look at the top right of the photo, and you can see the "brick" next to the window has a smooth curve.  I don't think real brick does this -- this looks like some kind of vinyl (or similar) covering that is simulating brick.

That's not to say there isn't real brick underneath.

Curved brick was a common material in the past, so it may be real.

(05-31-2017, 10:43 AM)tomh009 Wrote: [ -> ]

(05-30-2017, 10:41 PM)panamaniac Wrote: [ -> ]Faux brick?  Is that not the original cladding?

I doubt it.  Look at the top right of the photo, and you can see the "brick" next to the window has a smooth curve.  I don't think real brick does this -- this looks like some kind of vinyl (or similar) covering that is simulating brick.

That's not to say there isn't real brick underneath.

I don't see anything that mismatches the historical photo.
There are plenty of things that have been done with brick, including curved corners, for a hundred years and more.
That said, the white brick is certainly a more decorative finishing layer, and not load-bearing. Much like the Walper Hotel, which is built of yellow brick, but has a red brick layer on the streetfacing sides for aesthetic purposes.

From today's Record.

"Plans outlined in a report to the city's committee of adjustment indicate that the building's owners want to reconstruct a third storey that was lost to fire in the 1960s."

https://www.therecord.com/news-story/734...rd-storey/