Report to/Rapport au :
Local Architectural Conservation Advisory Committee
Comité consultatif sur la
conservation de l'architecture locale
and / et
Planning and Environment Committee
Comité de l'urbanisme et de
l'environnement
and Council / et au Conseil
3 January 2007 / le 3 janvier 2007
Submitted by/Soumis par : Nancy Schepers, Deputy City Manager/Directrice municipale adjointe
Planning, Transit and the Environment/ Urbanisme,
Transport en commun et Environnement
Contact
Person/Personne Ressource : Grant Lindsay, Manager / Gestionnaire,
Development Approvals / Approbation des demandes d'aménagement
(613)
580-2424, 13242 Grant.Lindsay@ottawa.ca
REPORT RECOMMENDATION
That
the Local Architectural Conservation Advisory Committee recommend that Planning
and Environment Committee recommend that Council:
1.
Approve the application to alter 19 Melrose Avenue according to the
plans received on December 6, 2006.
2.
Approve the design of the new stacked townhouses to be built to the
rear of the lot located at 19 Melrose Avenue.
(Note: Approval to Alter
this property under the Ontario Heritage
Act must not be construed to meet the requirements for the issuance of a
building permit.)
RECOMMANDATION DU RAPPORT
Que le Comité consultatif sur la
conservation de l’architecture locale recommande au Comité de l’urbanisme et de
l’environnement de recommander à son tour au Conseil :
1. d’approuver la demande visant à modifier le 19, avenue Melrose conformément aux plans reçus le 6 décembre 2006;
2. d’approuver la conception des nouvelles maisons superposées en rangée devant être construites à l’arrière de la propriété située au 19, avenue Melrose.
(Nota : L’approbation de la demande de modification aux termes de la Loi
sur le patrimoine de l’Ontario ne signifie pas pour autant qu’elle
satisfait aux conditions de délivrance d’un permis de construire)
The former Ecole Sacre Coeur, 19 Melrose Avenue, (see
Location Map, Document 1) has been
designated under Part IV of the Ontario Heritage Act (OHA) for
its cultural heritage value. (Document 2). The Former Ecole du Sacre Coeur is a
modest, flat-roofed, two-storey red brick structure, with a high basement
designed and built by Ottawa architect Francis Sullivan. The front façade is distinguished by a simple front
porch with a tiled roof, four piers and tall windows, grouped in threes, as
illustrated in Document 3.
After its designation, the Ottawa Carleton Separate School Board severed the land upon which the school sits and sold it. The new owners have submitted an "Application to Alter" under the Ontario Heritage Act to allow the conversion of the former school into condominium apartments and the construction of eight stacked townhouses at the rear of the site, a irregularly-shaped parcel.
DISCUSSION
From the 1970s until recently, the school was converted to the Youville Centre, a residential facility for unwed mothers. The proposed alteration will create eleven loft-style, two-storey apartments in the building through the addition of a partial third storey and the use of the basement as living space.
The major interventions to the school will be the construction of the partial third storey, the enlarging of the basement windows to below the top of the concrete foundation, the creation of new window and door openings and the addition of balconies on the north, south and east façades, and the installation of window boxes below some windows. The front façade will be unchanged, aside from window boxes and the enlarged basement windows. The school's nameplate will be retained and the tiled shed roof over the front entrance will be restored, as will the large brackets that support it. The sash of the windows has deteriorated badly and the windows will be replaced with identical windows. Windows in the new openings will replicate the fenestration pattern of the originals. The partial third storey, which will provide additional living space to five of the units, will be set back from the cornice at the front and rear of the building by about three metres and from the sides about five metres so it will not be visible from most points on Melrose Avenue. There will be a roof patio for each second floor unit and the existing cornice of the school will serve as an edge to the patio spaces (see Document 4, drawings of Ecole du Sacre Coeur).
Stacked townhouses
The stacked townhouses for the project will be located to the rear of the school in a separate building. The surface parking for the project is located to the front (west) of the townhouses, with four spaces to the north of the former school. These spaces will be buffered from the former school. The building will complement the character of the former school through its massing, materials and details. It is a three-storey, flat-roofed structure with a high basement. The front façade, is set back from Melrose Avenue roughly 44 metres, and is divided symmetrically into bays by piers topped with concrete, to echo the character of the former school. A mix of French doors and long rectangular windows, are arranged symmetrically in the bays. The third storey of the former school is clad in stucco panels to relate it to the new third storey of the former school. The panels break the cornice above the entrance doors, giving it an irregular profile (see elevations, Document 5)
Heritage staff concluded that the irregular cornice gave the front façade a cluttered look and asked the applicant to submit an alternative plan with a straight cornice (see Document 6). This version of the project is supported by staff , as it is urbane and relates well to the former school and the character of other flat-roofed buildings in the neighbourhood. The applicant, however, is equally committed to the irregular cornice line as a means of giving the building its own style that is complementary, but does not compete with, the original building and as a simple way of accommodating the differing planes of the front façade. Rather than choosing one design over the other, both are included here and LACAC, PEC and Council can decide which version they prefer.
Parks Canada's national "Standards and Guidelines for the Conservation of Historic Places in Canada," addresses the issue rooftop additions in Guideline 4 stating that rooftop additions,
When required for a new use of a building, designing a rooftop addition that is set back from the wall plane such that it is as inconspicuous as possible when viewed from the public realm.
The partial third storey reflects this "Guideline." It is set back from the cornice of the existing profile and is flat-roofed to keep its profile low and hence its effect on the streetscape will be minimal.
The "Standards and Guidelines" do not address new buildings adjacent to designated buildings, but the "Guideline" for additions provides useful direction for what is appropriate in cases where there is new and old construction in close quarters. It states:
Design for the new work may be contemporary or may reference design motifs from the historic place. In either case, it should be compatible in terms of mass, materials, relationship of solids to voids, and colour, yet be distinguishable from the historic place.
The stacked townhouses reflect this Guideline. The building, with its flat-roofed profile, use of red brick, symmetrical design, and large multi-paned windows complements the former school. This "Guideline" is also followed in the design of the partial third story as it is clad in a different material than the school and has a contemporary cornice, clearly identifying it as an addition to the original structure.
The Department supports this project as it preserves and brings new life to a building designated for its cultural heritage value in a manner that respects the building's heritage attributes and character. In addition, the stacked townhouses are sensitively designed and located so that the school continues to be the dominant presence on the lot. Finally, the construction of 19 units in this location fulfills the City's policies regarding infill development.
CONSULTATION
Adjacent property owners and residential tenants were notified by letter of the date of the Local Architecture Conservation Advisory Committee (LACAC) and Planning and Environment Committee meetings and were provided with comment sheets to be returned to LACAC. This is in accordance with the City's public participation policies.
The applicants attended a LACAC meeting as part of the pre-consultation process. LACAC supported the project.
The Ward Councillor, Christine Leadman, is aware of this project.
Heritage Ottawa is aware of this application.
The Hintonburg Community Association is aware of this project.
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS
This application has been processed within the 90-day
time period prescribed by the Ontario Heritage Act.
SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION
Document 2 Statement of
Reason for Designation
Document 3 Photograph,
front façade
Document 4 Elevations, converted building
Document 5 Elevations, stacked
townhouses
Document 6 Alternate design,
stacked townhouses as requested by staff
DISPOSITION
The Department of Corporate Services, Council and Committee Services Branch, to notify the applicant/ agent (Douglas Hardie, Douglas Hardie Architect, 311 Richmond Road, #301, Ottawa, Ontario, K1Z 6X3) and the Ontario Heritage Trust (10 Adelaide Street, 3rd Floor, Toronto, Ontario, M5C 1J3) of City Council’s consent to renovate and construct an addition to 19 Melrose Avenue and to build stacked townhouse units to the rear of the property.
The former École Sacré Coeur, 19 Melrose Street
Statement of Reason for Designation, Heritage
Attributes
The former École Sacré Coeur is recommended for
designation under Part IV of the Ontario Heritage Act for its cultural
heritage value.
Constructed in 1912 to serve the needs of the
French-speaking Roman Catholic children of Hintonburg, it is an important
physical reminder of the former vitality of the Francophone population in that
area of the City. It was designed by Ottawa architect Francis Sullivan, also known
for his early Prairie style buildings and his association with American
architect Frank Lloyd Wright. Sullivan designed three small schools for the
French Catholic Board between 1905 and 1912.
These schools were simple in design and execution, reflecting the
budgetary
constraints faced by the Catholic School Board
at the time.
Heritage Attributes
Like many school buildings constructed between
1900 and 1914, Sacré Coeur’s design reflects its function as a school, and thus
features a simple axial plan with classrooms on either side, large
four-over-four sash windows to provide fresh air and light and high-ceilinged
classrooms to maximize air circulation. Exterior decoration is simple, because
of the limited budget, and is restricted to the entranceway with its tiled
roof, exposed rafters and large brackets, the stringcourse formed by two rows
of perpendicular bricks, the stone topped buttresses, and the slightly gabled
parapet above the building’s name, carved in stone.
The interior of the building is not included in
this designation.