The proposed development for 106-116 .

111-113 Queen St. & 106-116 Sparks St., Cultural Heritage Impact Statement

PREPARED FOR ASHCROFT HOMES BY CONTENTWORKS INC. JUNE 2013

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION 3

CULTURAL HERITAGE VALUE 6

DEVELOPMENT PROPOSAL 10

CULTURAL HERITAGE IMPACT 14

RECOMMENDATIONS 16

CONCLUSION 16

APPENDIX A: APPROVAL FROM NCC 17

APPENDIX B: NCC STATEMENT OF CULTURAL HERITAGE SIGNIFICANCE FOR THE SPARKS STREET PROPOSED HERITAGE CONSERVATION DISTRICT, , 18

APPENDIX C: HERITAGE SURVEY AND EVALUATION FORM 19

APPENDIX D: GUIDELINES FOR THE SPARKS STREET HERITAGE CONSERVATION DISTRICT 20

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Figure 1: Site plan for the proposed development at 111-113 Queen St. & 106-116 Sparks St. Source: Roderick Lahey Architects Inc, 9 August 2012, annotated by Contentworks.

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Figure 2: Aerial photo showing 111-113 Queen St. and 106-116 Sparks St. (shown at the arrow) in relation to to the north. Source: City of Ottawa emaps, www.ottawa.ca, accessed 29 August 2012.

Introduction Contentworks Inc. has undertaken a review of a proposed development at 111-113 and 106-116 Sparks Street to assess its impact on the cultural heritage value of the Sparks Street Heritage Conservation District designated under Part V of the Ontario Heritage Act. This review has given regard to the following key policy documents:

 Central Area West Heritage Conservation District Study and Plan, December 1999  A Guide to Preparing Cultural Heritage Impact Statements, March 2012  Standards and Guidelines for the Conservation of Historic Places in , Second Edition, 2010

The review is based on the following design proposal documents:

 Architectural renderings and plans prepared by Roderick Lahey Architects Inc., 9 August 2012  Statement of Conservation Approach for the Restoration of the Façade of 108-116 Sparks Street for the Canlands A Project, 2 October 2006

The development includes an 18-storey mixed-use structure facing Queen Street that will contain retail space, condominiums and a hotel, and a 6-storey mixed-use structure facing Sparks Street. The development will be organized around a two-storey plaza that will provide an exterior pedestrian connection between Queen and Sparks Street. The plaza sits at grade on Queen Street. A stairway leads up to a courtyard, which is then connected by means of a gently sloped arcade to Sparks Street. A small one-storey link hidden behind both buildings at the Sparks Street level is part of a lobby that bridges the hotel’s entrance on Sparks Street to the Queen Street portion of the hotel. As discussed in more detail in

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this report, the historic façade of an existing building at 106-116 Sparks Street will be retained in-situ as part of the development.

The property proposed for development is comprised of three city lots that total 32 metres wide by 61 metres deep, covering a total area of 2,408 square metres. The assembled property bridges a grade differential of 3.5 metres between Sparks and Queen streets. The difference in grade and the depth (north to south) of the property has been fully exploited in the development’s configuration and design, allowing the much taller Queen Street portion to be partially obscured when viewed at grade from Sparks Street.

The north portion of the development site currently contains two buildings – 106 Sparks Street and 108- 116 Sparks Street – and empty lots on Queen Street. 106 Sparks Street is a three-storey modern bank building erected in the 1960s. It will be demolished for the redevelopment. 108-116 Sparks Street was originally constructed between 1870 and 1875 as a commercial and retail building, and was extensively remodelled in the 1890s. Subsequently, parts of the interior were renovated as a theatre in the 1910s when an auditorium was added to the building. The auditorium was demolished in the 1970s, leaving the rear part of the property facing Queen Street for parking and the front portion on Sparks Street standing for commercial and retail purposes. All portions of 108-116 Sparks Street, with the exception of the façade, will be demolished for the redevelopment.

Figure 3: 106 (left) is a former bank building that will be demolished in the proposed development. 108-116 (right) was built in 1873, with alterations to the façade in the 1890s. The proposal includes plans to retain the façade. Source: Contentworks, 2012.

The developer holds an agreement with the current property owner, the National Capital Commission. Under the National Capital Act (amended 1988), the NCC is obligated to conform municipal land-use decisions and relevant provincial and municipal laws, by-laws and plans. For the purposes of the CHIS, the relevant provincial and municipal legislation and plans to be considered are the Ontario Heritage Act and the “Architectural Conservation and Infill Guidelines” for the district. The Sparks Street Heritage Conservation District was designated as a result of a larger study of Ottawa’s downtown core (1997-99) titled the Central Area West Heritage Conservation District Study and Plan. The guidelines for the district are found in study’s documentation. The CHIS is exclusively concerned with these guidelines. It does not

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address any other design or site-plan requirements such as the project’s compliance with the NCC and City of Ottawa urban design guidelines or planning regulations.

The NCC has given its approval for the project. The approval document is included in Appendix A.

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Figure 4: The narrow properties and continuous commercial frontages contribute to the 19th-century main-street character on Sparks Street between Metcalfe and O’Connor streets. The Sparks Street development is located at the arrow. Source: Contentworks, 2012.

Cultural Heritage Value The Ashcroft Homes project is located within the municipally designated Sparks Street Heritage Conservation District (SSHCD). The district includes city blocks bounded by Wellington, Bank, Queen and Elgin streets, but excludes seven properties (previously or currently owned by the ) that are of sufficient heritage value to be designated as municipal heritage properties under Part IV of the Ontario Heritage Act. The seven excluded properties are the National Press Building, the Langevin Block, the Chambers Buildings, the Scottish Ontario Chambers, the Nova Scotia Bank, the Union Bank Building and the Poulin Building.

The SSHCD was formally recognized under Part V of the Ontario Heritage Act by the City of Ottawa in 2000 but the by-law was appealed to the Ontario Municipal Board. In 2007 the appeal resulted in a settlement addressing two issues – future heritage overlays and the heritage expectations for new developments. Neither issue is substantive for the purpose of this CHIS.

The SSHCD was designated for its association with the development of Ottawa as both a commercial centre and the nation’s capital. The City of Ottawa has not yet proposed a Statement of Cultural Heritage Value for the SSHCD. In its place, a Statement of Cultural Heritage Significance for the SSHCD prepared by the NCC that summarizes the heritage values and attributes set out in the CHCD serves as as guidance for this CHIS. The full text of the NCC’s Statement of Cultural Heritage Significance is included as Appendix B. In summary, it advises that the district has value because it features a concentration of private and public retail and administrative buildings that are associated with Ottawa

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history and have symbolic value to the Capital. The buildings represent a range of architectural styles, building types and periods of construction that co-exist to create a harmonious “main street” streetscape. Pedestrian movement contributes to the value of the district.

Figure 5: The SSHCD (top) is bounded by Wellington, Bank, Queen and Elgin streets, just south of Parliament Hill. Source: City of Ottawa.

The Ashcroft Homes development is centrally located in the core of the district in the middle of a block on Sparks Street that carries all of the district’s heritage values as described in the Statement of Cultural Heritage Significance. In spite of a range of architectural styles and periods of construction, both sides of the street feature a harmonious collection of narrow buildings with almost identical setbacks. While buildings vary in overall height and width, the ground floors are often similar in height. Ground-floor spaces were designed for use as banks, retail stores or restaurants; the upper floors served as offices.

The Ashcroft Homes project includes a large structure on Queen Street. While the whole property is within the district, the Queen Street streetscape does not contain the historic attributes associated with Sparks and Wellington streets.

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The SSHCD study examined individual properties in terms of their contribution to the heritage value of the district. Most of the Sparks Street buildings on the block between O’Connor and Metcalfe streets were evaluated at the time of the district study at the highest levels of heritage significance, namely, Group 1 or Group 2.1 106 Sparks Street, which was constructed in the 1960s for a bank, was evaluated as a Group 4 building, meaning that it does not contribute to the overall heritage character and value of the district. 108-116 Sparks Street was evaluated as a Group 2 building because it is built to the edge of the lot on Sparks Street and features architectural details that contribute to the historic, commercial streetscape and, therefore, to the overall heritage character and value of the district. The heritage survey and evaluation form for 108-116 Sparks Street has been included as Appendix C.

108-116 Sparks Street was constructed as an investment property by entrepreneur Weldon Champness. Built between 1870 and 1875, the building was designed as a modestly-scaled retail structure and is associated with the early phase of property development that occurred along Sparks Street following the opening of the Parliament Buildings and the subdivision of the south side of the street into building lots. During the 1870s an unprecedented commercial-sector building boom occurred in Ottawa, which led to the construction of this commercial block. The top two stories of the façade were extensively remodelled before 1897. This work applied Queen Anne detailing to an otherwise unremarkable three- storey retail and office building.

In 1915 the western portion of 108-116 Sparks Street was altered by theatre-owner Ben Stapleton as the lobby and entrance ramps for the new Centre Theatre, with an auditorium located on the lot between the Sparks Street building and Queen Street. Further changes were made in the 1930s or 40s that removed some decorative detailing. A photograph dating from c 1940 of the building’s Sparks Street façade provides good evidence of the building’s appearance with its 1940 marquee. The red brick on the present-day façade likely dates from c 1970. In 1973, the theatre – then known as the Odeon Mall Theatre – closed. Following the practice of theatre closures in many North American cities, the auditorium was immediately demolished. Complete demolition of the building was halted, thereby leaving 108-116 Sparks Street Figure 6: The Sparks Street façade c 1940 when it was the in a damaged, but usable, condition for offices. Centre Theatre. Source: City of Ottawa Archives, CA7102

1 The evaluation process and scoring are detailed in the Central Area West Heritage Conservation District Study and Plan, December 1999.

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The façade at 108-116 Sparks Street is 16 metres tall to the roofline and 20.3 metres wide. A simple cornice of artificial stone crowns the flat-roof. It was originally constructed of light yellow brick but changes or repairs led to the installation of red brick below the cornice line. The upper storeys of the façade are divided into a set of three wide window bays with a narrow fourth bay on the east end. Each of the wide window bays is two storeys in height with a large oriel window at the second storey. Each of the oriel windows is capped by a pediment and surmounted by an equally large three-over-three window. Two tall, narrow Italianate windows are set above one another in the eastern most bay. All windows on these two storeys are ornamented with pressed metal. The ground floor of the façade is divided into three bays. The cladding on the ground floor has been altered over the years to accommodate the building’s changing tenants.

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Figure 7: The proposed 18-storey building at 111-113 Queen Street as it would be seen from the Peace Tower. Source: Roderick Lahey Architects Inc, 9 August 2012.

Development Proposal The Ashcroft Homes project at 111-113 Queen Street and 106-116 Sparks Street is located on a prestigious site just 150 metres from Parliament Hill. The site is a through lot with the rear yard fronting on Queen Street. The Sparks Street frontage is approximately 40 metres. The frontage on Queen Street is 39 metres. The site is just over 60 metres in depth with a total site area of 2160 square metres. A substantial grade change occurs through the site, with the Sparks Street grade being over three-and-a- half metres higher than Queen Street.

106-116 Sparks Street The façade of the six-storey structure to be built at 106-116 Sparks Street will be divided in two portions that match the width of the current (2013) structures – 106 Sparks Street and 108-116 Sparks Street. The top of the ground-floor cornice line of the new façade is to be set at the same height as the rehabilitated façade, but the two facades will be clearly distinguished from one another in terms of materials and style. The new façade, from the ground level up to the top of the fourth floor, serves as a graceful transition from the plain modern-era office building on the east side of the development to the historic façade on the west. While the ground-floor cornice of 106 Sparks Street is set at the same height as the cornice of the historic façade, each of the next three storeys matches the height of the building to the east.

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The fifth and sixth storeys of the Queen Street portion of the development are set back from the property line by 3 metres and 6 metres respectively. The setback serves to lessen the impact of the height from Sparks Street while also providing space for terraces and balconies for the condominium and hotel.

The ground floor spaces of the development along Sparks Street will include an entrance to the hotel, retail space, an entrance to the condominiums and an arcade passage to the courtyards and stairways linking Queen and Sparks streets. Since the buildings will be set in line with the street, any planting and furnishings will be located near or on what would have originally been sidewalk before the Sparks Street pedestrian mall was created. Signage proposed for the hotel will be discretely set within the ground- floor cornice band.

Figure 8: The proposed development will include the retention of the facade of the current building at 108-116 Sparks Street (right). The façade of 106 Sparks Street (middle) will be a new structure. Source: Roderick Lahey Architects Inc., 9 August 2012.

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Figure 9: The 18-storey Queen Street building

111-113 Queen Street The Ashcroft Homes project also includes a modern 18-storey building facing Queen Street. The proposed height, to the top of the parapet of the mechanical penthouse, is 59 metres. At grade on Queen Street this building will include lobby areas for the condominium and hotel, service and storage areas for entire development, and a two-storey restaurant. The restaurant will open to an outdoor seating area on the edge of the narrow public plaza that provides access to a stairway and to the Sparks Street section of the development. Access to the four-and-a-half-storey underground parking garage will be located off Queen Street at the western boundary of the property. The second floor will feature retail and the second level of the restaurant. The balance of the building is a combination of residential condominium units and hotel rooms.

A one-storey building, which will be hidden between the two main structures, will serve as the hotel lobby and a link between the buildings. On the eastern portion of its roof will be a courtyard that will be accessible via a stairway leading from the outdoor café and Queen Street, and the hotel lobby. The courtyard will be paved with precast concrete unit pavers in a checkerboard pattern. The site will contain minimal landscaping. The centre of the courtyard will be occupied by a large, rectangular planter. Additional precast concrete and urn-style planters will be located next to entrances and seating areas, including restaurant tables and wooden benches.

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The plans reviewed by this consultant depict a set of buildings with exterior finishes that make extensive use of masonry materials, specifically clay brick and Georgian limestone. Doors, windows and balconies will feature contemporary materials that update the district’s historic enduring reliance on resilient, high-quality finishes.

Views The proposed development will be visible from several prominent vantage points including the Sparks Street pedestrian mall, Parliament Hill, the World Exchange plaza, and between Wellington and Queen Street. The development will not disrupt the view of Parliament Hill from Metcalfe Street.

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Figure 10: Sparks Street is a pedestrian mall with a 19th-century main street atmosphere. Source: Contentworks, 2012.

Cultural Heritage Impact The impact of the proposed development on the cultural heritage value of the SSHCD is considered in the context of principles and guidelines outlined in the Central Area West Heritage Conservation District Study, which serve as the conservation guidelines for the SSHCD. Relevant guidelines from the study are attached as Appendix D.

The study’s key conservation recommendation for Sparks Street is: “Sparks Street should be restored to an historic street form, one that recovers the traditional emphasis on pedestrian movement close to rows of commercial frontages, that encourages new building frontages to follow the historic patterns, particularly of narrow frontages and varying frontage height, and that keeps any vehicular passage to the central part of the street allowance, maximizing the “sidewalk.” No recommendations are made about Queen Street. Further, the study recommends that the City and the NCC and other federal agencies coordinate reviews and planning tools for projects in the district.

Conservation Principles With specific reference to conservation principles, the study recommends that the City of Ottawa should apply several principles to design reviews. The principles relevant to the Ashcroft Homes project, in addition to the specific conservation recommendations for Sparks Street, include:

 Maintain the overall quality of surviving building groupings and frontages, paying attention to both overall forms and particular details.  Protect the visible diversity characteristic of the incremental growth of the area, both in overall form and in detail.

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 Respect the materials and traces of accumulations, accretions and additions. The project maintains the overall quality of surviving building groupings and frontages, paying attention to both overall forms and particular details. The relevant groupings and frontages cover the entire streetscape on the south side of the Sparks Street block. The development follows the pre- existing lot pattern, preserves an historic façade, creates a new façade using Modern geometry on the site of a 1960s bank building, and creates a graceful transition from new buildings to an historic façade.

The project protects the visible diversity characteristic of the incremental growth of the area, both in overall form and in detail. The development is conceived as a set of interconnected structures that present themselves as separate structures. The inclusion of the historic façade and the design of a new façade using proportions typical of 1960s buildings speak directly to the incremental growth of the district. The project also respects the materials and traces of accumulations, accretions and additions in the district through the preservation of a modified historic façade and the continuation of previously informal connections between Queen and Sparks street. The exterior materials of glass, brick and stone are typical of the various types and ages of buildings in the district. Development Guidelines The project is also consistent with development recommendations in the district study that emphasize the recovery of pedestrian movement and the use of narrow frontages of varying frontage height. The development includes a two-storey plaza connected by stairs and an arcade to encourage pedestrian movement between Queen and Sparks streets. The frontages along Sparks Street follow the previous building widths but the direct frontages in line with the street are of different heights. The project includes the protection of the façade at 108-116 Sparks Street and the replacement of an existing building (106 Sparks Street) with a new component that will contribute to the preservation of the lot patterns along the south side of Sparks Street. The project is also consistent with recommendations that new development maximize the sidewalk. All loading and parking access is restricted to Queen Street.

General Comment on the Rehabilitation of the Façade The integration of the rehabilitated façade in its original location will contribute to the historic environment of Sparks Street and strengthen the continuity of architectural forms on the south and north sides of the street. The proposed design serves to re-establish the monochromatic brickwork and the elegance of the façade. The lack of a clear marquee, however, diminishes its legibility as a former theatre.

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Recommendations Façade: If the design is to be reconsidered to address its historic appearance in a more systematic manner, further historical research is recommended to establish its appearance at various times in its history and to determine whether some elements could be recovered or interpreted in the design. Of particular interest would be the integration of new signage to reinforce the façade’s original purpose as the front of a theatre.

Overall Development: No recommendations for changes to the designs are being put forward.

Interpretation: Historical research using archival records from the City of Ottawa and the Ontario Archives could be used to produce an interpretive display inside the development.

Conclusion The proposed development at 111-113 Queen St. & 106-116 Sparks St., as illustrated in the documents and architectural drawings provided, will be consistent with Guidelines for the Sparks Street Heritage Conservation District. The division of the project into visually discrete units with the tallest building (18 storeys) located along Queen Street and the shorter buildings along Sparks Street creates a layered urban form that helps reinforce the differences in the patterns of use, history and design of Sparks Street and Queen Street. This distinction is recognized as a character-defining element of the historic place. The use of visually distinct blocks at the ground and upper levels is consistent with the variety of forms that are typical of evolved cultural landscapes such as the Sparks Street Heritage Conservation District. The development also includes the protection of an historic façade.

The project includes the opening of a pedestrian route between Sparks and Queen streets. The reinforcement of a pedestrian environment through the use of ground floor spaces and the addition of a new pedestrian circulation system will contribute to the objectives of the Sparks Street Heritage Conservation District. The proposed pedestrian link will help improve the quality, space and attractiveness of pedestrian amenities in the district.

In sum, the Ashcroft Homes project respects the surviving building groupings and frontages, protects the visible diversity characteristic of the incremental growth in the area, makes an important contribution to re-establishing the commercial vitality of the district, increases pedestrian movement, and inserts a new frontage on Sparks Street that will lessen the formerly harsh transition from old to new on the south side of the block.

Respectfully submitted

Julie Harris, M. Mus., CAHP

111-113 QUEEN ST. & 106-116 SPARKS ST. CHIS, JUNE 2013 CONTENTWORKS INC. Appendix A: Approval from NCC

Appendix B: NCC Statement of Cultural Heritage Significance for the Sparks Street Proposed Heritage Conservation District, Ottawa, Ontario

Description of Historic Place The Sparks Street Heritage Conservation District includes the blocks and streets bonded by Wellington, Bank, Queen and Elgin Streets, but excludes 7 properties already designated under Part IV of the Ontario Heritage Act (the Langevin Block, the Chambers Buildings, the Bell Block, the Nova Scotia Bank, the Union Bank Building and the building occupied by Zellers). It is a commercial streetscape, with buildings typically 3 to 4 storeys high, including some richly decorated façades.

Heritage Value There is a concentration of private and public administrative and retail buildings, and, despite gaps in the continuity of older buildings along Sparks street, the heritage value of Sparks Street is evident and readily recognizable and, by extension it is symbolic of the role of the buildings and Sparks Street itself in Ottawa’s history.

A range of architectural styles, building types and periods of construction, representing important phases in Ottawa’s development (1870’s, 1880-1895, 1895 until First World War, 1920-1945 and 1946- 1989) co-exist on Sparks Street.

But the Sparks Street Heritage Conservation District retains its 19th-century character, even with many 20th century façades, primarily because of the narrow properties and the continuous frontages on the street line. Sparks Street Heritage Conservation District retain an aura of “main street” with shops on the sidewalk, offices and flats on upper storey, attracting and generating pedestrian traffic and crowds. It is also a very important pedestrian mall project of the 1960s.

Character-Defining Elements Sparks Street Heritage Conservation District has a variety of elements that are important in preserving its heritage value including:

 the continued evidence for the original morphology of the street (which was divided into chain length division (66’ or 20m))  continuous frontage on the street line  ground-level retail uses with offices or flats on upper levels  narrow façades, with frequent and closely-spaced entrances  various frontage heights, and  various architectural styles representing various economic development phases, but typically in stone or brick, some of them with ornate detailing. Reference: Central Area West Heritage Conservation District Study and Plan. City of Ottawa, 1998.

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Appendix C: Heritage Survey and Evaluation Form

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Appendix D: Guidelines for the Sparks Street Heritage Conservation District Selected Relevant Guidelines

7. Recommendations:

Architectural Conservation and Infill Guidelines.

Part A of this report documents a set of building types and notable features of these types that are characteristic of the study area, particularly what the study proposes to be districts and precincts. The architectural variety of Uppertown’s commercial streets is considerable, but this variety does have certain important common threads that this study recommends every new development should respect. The underlying principle here, to repeat, is that the most appropriate source of precedent is that of the adjacent neighbourhood and street.

It is unreasonable (and not possible) to impose precise specifications for “compatibility” on every property. What is reasonable, and what is recommended, is that plans for conservation or development projects include evidence that owners and consultants have assessed their proposal in relation to the heritage values of their site and surroundings – not only in relation to the information in this report and on file at the City of Ottawa, but also on detailed supplementary investigation. Each development must be assessed on its own merits and on how well it fits the character of its street and vicinity.

This study recommends that:

7.1 In approving developments and constructing public works, the City of Ottawa should in general promote projects that aid the conservation of architectural forms and details particular to the precinct and district context, and in particular that follow the guidelines in this report. 7.2 Applicants for projects in heritage precincts and the general public should have access to all available information on heritage properties on the site and nearby. 7.3 In reviewing project proposals in heritage conservation districts and in heritage precincts, the City of Ottawa should ensure that applicants provide appropriate documentation of their projects in their physical and historical context, including supplementary information on notable architectural characteristics and on previous site use and character. a. Notable features to recognize and respect The general objective for urban heritage conservation should be to conserve what exists and to make new buildings in the spirit of local-area architectural character. That does not mean slavish imitation of neighbours (though that may not be ruled out). What such an objective does mean is that, rather than construct generic buildings that could exist or have existing anywhere (be they modern or period-style), new construction in a district or precinct of recognized character should have regard for and follow the cues of neighbouring buildings and streets. The neighbourhood is a catalogue of information resources for new development, both as setting and as character-definer for new insertions.

In an area where the character of the neighbourhood is consistent, coherent and of a single period, this is clearly an easier task than it is in an environment of great variety. Nonetheless, the proposed districts and precincts are distinctively “commercial”, with continuous frontages of varying heights, and their characteristics are different from other areas of Ottawa, summarized as follows. (See pages 86 to 115.)

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Notable features shared by all older commercial frontages (applicable to Bank and Sparks districts) . Built to side-lot lines and to street line; * . (* “street line” is in detail a narrow band of projections and recesses in plan and often in elevation – approximate depth 5 to 10% of property width – approximate minimum of 30 to 40% of front elevation on the property line) . Recessed store and building entrances; . Large-pane street-level glazing; . Full height of building at street line; . North of Slater, heights rarely consistent from property to property; . Unity of overall façade composition, but treatment of ground floor distinct from upper stories; . Fascia/signboard and associated detail provide transition zone between storefront and upper façade; . Upper-storey window treatments and surrounds often mimic overall relationships and proportions of façade; . Tendency for upper stories to remain as built, ground floor to be periodically modified; . Elaborated or well-defined cornice/skyline to cap façade, normally symmetrical, sometimes variegated, sometimes boxy/flat to stand out from neighbours; . Frequent elaborated or differentiation of window elevations on topmost one or more storeys; . Access to upper stories from within building for commerce, separate street entrance for residence; . Direct rear-lane access rarely available in area (except selected blocks on Wellington).

Notable features for banks, differing from other commerce . Greater stylistic unity of ground-floor façades and upper levels; . Small ground-floor windows; . Durable, fashionable and elaborate original-period composition and materials . Notable interior spaces, often large and ornate; . Less evident exterior changes from early/original appearance.

Special conditions for Wellington . Narrow side-yards or lanes between buildings. In each of the precincts, these historic architectural patterns are urban design “standards” against which new frontages should be assessed. In addition, new frontages should also have regard for previous occupation of the specific site, as evident on the historic maps and photographs.

There should be no requirement for new designs to replicate historic conditions – these guidelines should be thought of as questions that new designs need to respond to, before they can be considered “fitting”.

Each proposed precinct and district provides a slightly different set of historic and present-day conditions, as described most clearly in the sequence of maps and aerials following page 91.

The appropriate guidelines for any given site will combine the notable features of the building type with the historic sequence evident in the precinct views. Every development project in a heritage precinct and district should provide, in its documentation, visual evidence of how it responds to each of the notable features for its design, in relation to the specific conditions of its neighbouring frontages and its surrounding or adjoining heritage precinct or heritage conservation district. b. Specific issues and guidelines for street frontages in districts and precincts. i. Issue: New building setback or street-wall requirements that make historic buildings ill-fitting or non-conforming There is a conventional and accepted urban-design goal to establish build-to lines to define the space of a central-area commercial street. But there is variation in conditions on any street, and rarely if ever a

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single precise build-to line when one looks closely. On each commercial block there is a general adherence to a street line, but close-up, there are small projections and recesses that punctuate and animate building frontages. New buildings in modern dress seldom understand this, and lack visual interest. New buildings in reproduction dress – emulations of historic styles – are often flattened and diluted, and also lack visual interest. To some extent, this lack of understanding of historic design character makes the older buildings look good, but eventually they begin to look peculiar when they no longer set the tone. By then, the authentic historic character of the street as a group of frontages will have been lost.

Strategy:

Make street-frontage bands, to enhance the definition and continuity of existing public street space on historic streets.

Guidelines:

1. Conservation projects and new designs should define a band of street-line and setback dimensions – based on neighbouring heritage properties – within which all building façade elements shall be located in plan and elevation, generally facing public streets. 2. New or restored frontages should provide overall street-wall definition and variety of detail corresponding to and in harmony with neighbouring frontages. 3. Permit applications for development in heritage conservation districts should be required to include a comparative visual analysis of neighbouring streetscapes, indicating how new frontages will fit into their particular historic settings. 4. Site-plan review application in heritage precincts should be encouraged to include such an analysis. ii) Issue: New-building/zoning height requirements that make the profiles of historic buildings ill- fitting or non-conforming

The currently conventional and accepted urban-design goal of a consistent cornice line to define the space of the street (a Georgian-period or a Beaux-Arts ideal) does not recognize the variation and vitality of individual conditions characteristic of Victorian and Edwardian streets. Close examination often reveals considerable variation, where the impact of greater height is mitigated by relatively narrow frontages, such as along some portions of Sparks Street. This should be an encouraged approach to introducing new frontages along commercial streets, so long as no individual frontage is unusually wide.

Strategy

Make heterogeneous skyline bands, with upper and lower limits, to enhance the variety of existing public views and street-wall definition on historic commercial streets.

Guidelines:

1) Conservation projects and new designs should define a proportion – based on neighbouring heritage properties – of height at street-line to façade width (and building setbacks as applicable), and enable building heights in a range in accord with that proportion – building height in any case should not exceed zoning limits. 2) Property assemblies with wide frontages should be encouraged to divide up their frontages along the lines of historic lot dimension, and to vary skylines accordingly, following historic precedents in the precinct. 3) New skyline elements may be lower or higher than their immediate neighbours, provided that the average building height of a block should be no greater than about two-thirds of the maximum

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individual height allowed by zoning, and that narrower frontages are permitted more flexibility than wide frontages. 4) Permit applications for development in heritage conservation districts should be required to include a comparative visual analysis of neighbouring skylines, indicating how new frontages will fit into their particular historic settings. 5) Site-plan review application in heritage precincts should be encouraged to include such an analysis. iii) Issue: Reduced presence of retail activity on the street at micro-scale

There is a conflict between the conventional retail approach for consistent, mall-like, storefront conditions, architecturally controlled, versus the traditional independence and variety of storefronts (according to type, age, fashion and so on) that are found on relatively unregulated historic streets. Close examination of these variations suggest that while there are often contrasts with the historic architectural “frame”, and occasional conflict, these are a necessary part of the vitality of the street and its ongoing attractiveness to retail shoppers and visitors.

To encourage such variety and changeability may from time to time create difficult relationships with the architectural “container”. This is nonetheless part of the traditional character of commercial streets. In part, such conflicts should be mitigated by mandating relatively narrow and frequent frontages, as well as accommodating changing use of vestibule space and even public sidewalk space.

Strategy

Make retail frontages at grade distinct from upper-level elevations, to enhance the definition, continuity and variety of existing public space on historic commercial streets.

Guidelines:

1) Conservation projects and new designs should enable storefronts with a wide range of traditional characteristics, including deep entranceways and display vitrines, generous pedestrian shelter, ground-level setbacks, and pedestrian-viewable signage. 2) Property assemblies with wide frontages should be encouraged to divide up their frontages along the lines of historic lot dimensions, and to vary store frontages, building entranceways and signage accordingly, following historic precedents in the precinct. 3) Permit applications for development in heritage conservation districts shall include a comparative visual analysis of neighbouring storefronts, indicating how new frontages will fit into their particular historic settings. 4) Site-plan review application in heritage precincts should be encouraged to include such an analysis.

8. Recommendations: public environment and heritage It must be remembered that heritage conservation districts by themselves have no application to landscapes, whether private grounds or public environments. Thus (in part) the recommendation that the City recognize a more comprehensive policy device, a heritage precinct, as a context for policies that aim to conserve historic architecture and its settings together. Heritage permits and development reviews aim to promote the conservation of properties alongside public streets. There is a complementary need for the public environment of the street to be assessed and enhanced to provide suitable views and physical access to those properties. While there are mechanisms for shared expenditures among private and public sectors and among governments, prime responsibility for the public environments of the proposed districts and precincts lies with the City of Ottawa.

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The recommendations here do not distinguish between current roles of City of Ottawa and the Regional Municipality of Ottawa-Carleton. At the time of this study’s completion, it appears certain that the City and the Region will be merged into a single government by the Province of Ontario sometime in 2000. In the following recommendations, “City” refers to the municipal government as a whole, which in the interim, may include both City and Region.

This study recommends that:

8.1 In constructing public works, the City of Ottawa should in general promote projects that aid the conservation architectural forms and details particular to the distinct character and context of heritage conservation districts character and context of heritage conservation districts and heritage precincts, and in particular that follow the precedents and guidelines in this report. 8.2 The City of Ottawa should establish and provide financial resources toward a program of public art and heritage installations in heritage precincts, including the Sparks Street Mall, public parkland, and pedestrian ways alongside the Confederation Boulevard and . 8.3 The City of Ottawa should seek the cooperation of the National Capital Commission and Parks Canada to supplement and coordinate with a City program of public art and heritage installations, including financial, technical and logistical support. a. Improved conditions for pedestrians The improvement and maintenance of a friendly environment for people outside their automobiles is an essential prerequisite for heritage conservation. It is simply not possible to reconcile the speed and attention required for vehicle traffic with the much slower movements of people simply looking at their surroundings.

Among North American cities, Ottawa was among the earliest and most committed to the enhancement of the pedestrian environment, and Sparks was one of the earliest and longest-lasting pedestrianized streets. However, simply removing car traffic from part of Sparks has not by itself either restored the faltering retail economy of the street and its surroundings, nor has it had much effect on pedestrian amenity anywhere else in the study area, especially on the sidewalks of intersecting streets. For heritage conservation to be an attractive prospect for private property owners, they will need some suggestion of support in the public realm. Ottawa’s downtown streets are narrow, filled with traffic, and not very interesting to walk along, even though there is a considerable “captive” population of bus passengers making their way to and from the Albert and Slater street bus routes.

This is not to say that there are no plans for such improvements, but even plans of the 1980s remain unexecuted. Strictly speaking, action in the public realm is not part of what is authorized in heritage conservation district legislation. But we believe it is appropriate and necessary, from a “heritage” point of view, to reinforce the City’s longstanding policy intents to make improvements to sidewalks and to pedestrian traffic. We accordingly propose that, in cooperation with other governments, the City of Ottawa should:

 Improve pedestrian amenity: improve the continuity of pedestrian routes  Widen sidewalks wherever possible throughout the area.  Increase the pedestrian waiting space at intersections; among other things square off sidewalk corners at intersections and relocate poles and other street furniture; minimize capricious obstructions to pedestrian movement.  Establish and demarcate viewpoints for directed axial and panoramic view, including where appropriate interpretive devices such as explanatory texts and historic visual images.  Assure direct and generous public pedestrian, bicycle and visual connections from any LeBreton Flats development to Sparks and Wellington Streets. 

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b. A restored Sparks Street Because of the older historic role of Sparks Street as the city’s premier commercial street, with a busy street railway, and its more “recent” historic role as a pedestrianized street, any proposal for the conservation of its heritage must take into account some exceedingly complex – and somewhat conflicting – factors. We encourage the improvement of the pedestrian environment throughout the heritage precincts we recommend, but that may involve a less rigorously pedestrian street on Sparks itself.

We offer on the following pages a small selection of pedestrianized city streets and situations examined during the period of this study. There are certainly many more potential precedents and possibilities that can be found in the literature of planning and urban design. In brief, we consider the current physical arrangement on Sparks Street – emulating a temporary street fair in very permanent form – is inappropriate to its heritage and possibly inappropriate to its economic health as a retail street. Sparks Street can learn from the lessons of Boston’s Washington Street, other examples from Montréal, Burlington (Vermont), and Toronto, and even modest gestures elsewhere within Ottawa.

We are aware that any rearrangement of Sparks Street will be contentious, but we do not believe the status quo can continue, if the street and its precinct have any hope of emulating (even in part) the current attractiveness of livelier areas such as the By Ward Market district.

We accordingly propose that, in cooperation with other governments and to enhance the Sparks Street HCD and the Sparks heritage precinct, the City of Ottawa should:

 Consider the Sparks Street Mall to be a continuous pedestrian-priority domain across the intersecting streets, treating (and paving) these streets as “sidewalk crossings”; this area of pedestrian priority should include the north side of Queen the south side of Wellington and the sidewalks of the north-south streets; north-south vehicle traffic moving to or from Wellington should be persuaded to connect via Elgin or Kent/Lyon.  Consider the pedestrian areas all together as an adjunct to the sidewalks of Confederation Boulevard, and improve both paving and directional aids cooperatively.  Enforce pedestrian priority and clear passage at intersections.  Remove or relocate the large structures in the street allowance that block pedestrian movement and amenity, and that interfere with shopfronts. Re-pave and re-furnish the mall as a pedestrian- priority route, with throat narrowings on cross streets at intersections. Provide for room for cafés and the like as sidewalk occupations following historic precedent and practice on similar types of street in Ottawa an elsewhere.  Consider creating a clear central laneway (as immediately west of ), perhaps separated from pedestrian-only areas by bollards (minimal level changes) – change street drainage so that “gutters” define road/sidewalk.  Introduce north-south pedestrian passages and connections only where these will not detract from Bank Street.  Enforce service-vehicle restrictions aggressively. Consider designating a dedicated service lay-by or loading area for each half-block, via Queen Street or intersecting north-south streets, if necessary in place of taxi ranks, and consider relocating taxi ranks to Wellington and Queen streets.  Accommodate bicycle passage and parking, safe from conflicts with pedestrians.

c. Coordinated interpretation of both Capital and City The lines of Ottawa’s history noted in Part A all seem to get knotted around the central issue that Ottawa is a capital city, and that its supposed “high” status seems to elude appropriate physical form. Central Ottawa has been the focus of more visionary plans than any other Canadian city, but has not benefited from those visions in any way easily distinguishable from the transformation of other cities in the last half-

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century. The results of the Greber plan, still unquestioned in importance for more than 60 years, included large swaths of green space and monumental building complexes, but also large areas of land cleared and never rebuilt and a road system inimical to the amenity of anyone outside a vehicle. Nonetheless, this is all part of the civic heritage.

We are aware that some of these “messages” of history may not be flattering to posterity, or even to some current proposals. Nonetheless, we do not subscribe to the view that history equals “good” news – we do not believe that the public interest is well served by ignoring or suppressing interesting and truthful histories that actually explain the buildings that line the city’s streets, and even the streets themselves. For this study we have compiled visual documents not only to point out architectural precedents to guide new development, but also to provide raw material for interpretive displays and devices on city streets.

Uppertown has a scattering of historic texts and installations from several different agencies in addition to its historic buildings. We propose, simply, that the energies of these agencies should be coordinated, and that the city’s stories deserve their place in parallel to the national stories, and that together they can be used in commemorative and artistic forms that will make the proposed heritage precincts attractive to visitors and educational to citizens. And at least symbolically supportive to private conservation efforts We accordingly propose that, in cooperation with other governments and particularly the National Capital Commission, the City of Ottawa should:

 Develop a program of interpretive displays on Confederation Boulevard that are “bi-interpretive”, with both national and local facets.  Provide a network of local directional signs and wayfinding devices that makes it easy for visitors to move between Parliamentary and civic places of interest.  Establish a series of interpretive kiosks, and directed public viewpoints, containing texts and visual documents about the specific locations.  Develop a system of pavement marking that ties together self-guided walking tours of Uppertown and the Parliamentary precinct.  Develop a program of public art that presents and reinterprets city history in the places where that history took place: consider the streets as (changing) galleries of art and heritage, comprising historic architecture, directed axial and panoramic views, and installations of artworks that complement their context in time and in space.

d. Coordinated commercial signs and heritage objectives Judging by the range of commercial sign treatments evident in the historic photographs, “appropriate” signage is a matter of changeable taste. The only apparent consistency is that no commercial signs face Wellington Street, at least since the 1930’s.

Commercial signage is regulated separately from the zoning by-law. In areas of historic value (whether designated districts or heritage precincts), it would be inconsistent to recommend deferential or other approaches to historically “appropriate” signs so as not to obstruct the visual interest of historic architecture, while at the same time tolerating public installations that block those views, such as the current installations on Sparks east of Bank, or to a lesser extend the illuminated advertising cylinders on Bank Street.

As a matter of policy for heritage districts and precincts, both public and private signage must be reviewed together.

We accordingly propose that, in cooperation with other governments and particularly the National Capital Commission, the City of Ottawa should:

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 Encourage, in general, new or renewed commercial signs to follow the precedents illustrated in the historic images in Part A.  Encourage technical solutions that, whether deferential or aggressive in design, at least ensure that (1) signs and changes are all reversible or demountable without damaging the building, and (2) there is no interference with neighbouring signage that is not agreed in advance.  Encourage the business community to participate in the formulation of a program of special sign requirements for each precinct that would be coordinated with programs of public heritage displays and public art.

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