Ottawa – The City of Ottawa announced the recipients of the 2012-2014 Ottawa Architectural Conservation Awards today, recognizing commitment to local architectural heritage.
“The beautifully preserved properties honoured by the Ottawa Architectural Conservation Awards serve an important role: encouraging further investment in their respective communities," said Mayor Jim Watson. "By recognizing these incredible achievements in restoration and conservation, we are reminded of the rich history that exists in Ottawa for residents and visitors alike.”
The Ottawa Architectural Conservation Awards recognize excellence in the preservation of the city’s architectural heritage. Awards were presented in five categories: restoration (return of heritage resources to original form, material and integrity), addition (additions to historic buildings), adaptive reuse (adaptation of an old building for a new purpose, retaining its heritage character), infill (new construction in an historic context) and other (conservation of engineering works, gardens, landscape features).
"The projects honoured at this year’s Ottawa Architectural Conservation Awards come from all corners of the city and will serve to give our city’s heritage community the profile and attention it deserves," said Councillor Tobi Nussbaum, Chair of the Built Heritage Sub-Committee. "I congratulate all the recipients, and indeed all the nominees, for the commitment they have shown to conserving and preserving Ottawa’s built heritage.”
A jury of three heritage professionals considered the submissions and selected seven properties to receive the Award of Excellence, the top award:
- Simard House, 31 Sweetland Avenue (Restoration)
- Tropical Greenhouse, Central Experimental Farm (Restoration)
- 32 Cameron Avenue (Addition)
- Rideau Hall, Dome Building, 1 Sussex Drive (Addition)
- Building 94, Central Experimental Farm, 901 Prince of Wales Drive (Adaptive Re-Use)
- Carp Village Café and Apartments, 3773 Carp Road (Infill)
- Gourlay Ruins, 131 Gourlay Lane (Other)
Five additional properties were presented an Award of Merit:
- 20 Clemow Avenue (Restoration)
- St. Alban’s Anglican Church, 454 King Edward Avenue (Restoration)
- 73 Crichton Street (Addition)
- 68 Park Road (Infill)
- Supreme Court of Canada, 301 Wellington Street (Other)
As part of the awards ceremony, five properties and one heritage conservation district were presented with heritage designation plaques to demonstrate the City’s commitment to preserving and interpreting its cultural heritage.
- Burpee House, 22 Rideau Terrace
- Ruins of Old St. Mary’s Anglican Church and Cemetery
- Simard House, 31 Sweetland Avenue
- 478 Albert Street
- Église Ste-Anne, 528 Old St. Patrick Street
- Briarcliffe Heritage Conservation District
Further information on all the award winners is available at ottawa.ca.
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Backgrounder
Project Summaries and Heritage Designation Plaques
Simard House
Award of Excellence, Residential/Commercial
Category: Restoration
Address: 31 Sweetland Avenue
The Simard House (1884) is a rare example of a modest, Second Empire style house that is designated under Part IV of the Ontario Heritage Act. Restoring this structure using historical materials and based on historical evidence was a significant achievement, given its severely degraded condition. The jury noted: “The addition harmonizes well with the existing structure, and demonstrates that a combination of careful attention to details, materials and scale does not add significantly to immediate costs but adds value to the property over time. The creation of five apartments within a relatively small structure addresses both heritage conservation concerns in a Heritage Conservation District, and provincial policy that favours intensification. This restoration project proves that heritage structures can be brought back from the brink, and should be.”
Experimental Farm Tropical Greenhouse
Award of Excellence, Institutional
Category: Restoration
The Tropical Greenhouse on the Central Experimental Farm, a National Historic Site, has been a prominent public feature on the farm for almost a century. The restoration of the greenhouse, which was badly deteriorated due to the extreme heat and humidity maintained year round within the structure, followed the Standards and Guidelines for the Conservation of Historic Places in Canada. The jury stated: “The restoration of the Lord & Burnham Co. greenhouse was based on solid historical research and the use of original materials and technologies to reinstate the building’s jewel-like appearance. The restoration work was conducted with a light hand, letting the elegance of the original structure itself shine through.”
Building 94, Central Experimental Farm
Award of Excellence, Institutional
Category: Adaptive Re-Use
Address: 901 Prince of Wales Drive
Building 94 was constructed in 1936-37 for the Department of Agriculture as a place to design, build and test specialized farm machinery. The renovation, repair and adaptive re-use of Building 94 turned it into a state-of-the-art learning centre for the Canadian Agriculture and Food Museum. The renovated spaces provide permanent exhibition spaces, lunch rooms, a multi-purpose meeting hall, offices and three learning labs. The design celebrates the building’s legacy as a place of ongoing experimentation, research and engineering. The jury noted: “The industrial qualities of the original structure informed the qualities of the modern museum spaces.”
Carp Village Café and Apartments
Award of Excellence, Residential/Commercial
Category: Infill
Address: 3773 Carp Road
This new mixed-use redbrick building is home to Alice’s Village Café and two residential apartments on the second floor. It is located at the former site of the garden of St. James Rectory, which was built in 1905. The jury observed: “This project fulfills all the expectations of excellence for infill, as well as the goals of the Carp Community Design Plan. The new building has brought new commercial services into the core with a multi-functional building that respects its historical context but is unquestionably of its own time. The new building’s massing, materials and form harmonize with its neighbouring heritage structures, and its tight setback from the street perpetuates the traditional streetscape of small-town commercial properties with respect to both pedestrian and vehicular traffic.”
32 Cameron Avenue
Award of Excellence, Residential/Commercial
Category: Addition
The house at 32 Cameron Avenue was constructed c. 1887 and was designated under Part IV of the Ontario Heritage Act in 1981. It is a one-and-one-half storey brickveneer structure with a double gable, ornate bargeboards and a one-storey veranda with decorative woodwork and railings. The modern addition at the rear of the building respects the height, scale and materials of the main body of the house. It is distinguishable from the original building and is designed and sited so that it is barely visible from most angles. The jury commented that the project “demonstrates how existing residential buildings can be expanded without compromising either the appearance of the house or the relationship between the house and street.”
Rideau Hall, Dome Building
Award of Excellence, Institutional
Category: Addition
Address: 1 Sussex Drive
The Rideau Hall Dome Building (1877) was built by the Department of Public Works as a ‘gasometer,’ which was used to store coal gas for lighting the Rideau Hall site. Currently used as office space, the restoration and addition re-organized the building to better suit programming requirements and provide barrier-free access, while retaining the original character of the building. This addition follows the Standards and Guidelines for the Conservation of Historic Places in Canada as it is physically and visually compatible with, yet subordinate to and distinguishable from, the original historic structure. The jury noted: “The project fully respects the original volumes of the building and its exterior and materials, the placement of its original windows and the shape of its floor plates. The addition frees the original structure from the space-consuming encumbrances of modern services; it also provides views in all directions from which to appreciate the landscapes and structures of Rideau Hall.”
Gourlay Ruins
Award of Excellence, Residential/Commercial
Category: Other
Address: 131 Gourlay Lane
When the owners of 131 Gourlay Lane purchased the lot in the Elmwood subdivision, the walls of the historic Gourlay house remained in badly deteriorated condition on the property. Rather than demolish the historic stonework, the owners saved the ruins and incorporated them into the landscaping of their property. The jury noted: “The stabilization of the ruins of a large house and the project’s integration into a modern landscape demonstrate excellence in the craft of stonemasonry and respect for an existing resource which was an excellent candidate for a new role in a new setting. New elements on the landscape are sensitively integrated into the historical fabric and are subordinate to it. The site speaks poetically of the long history of the village of Carp and surrounding farmland.”
20 Clemow Avenue
Award of Merit
Category: Restoration
The house at 20 Clemow Avenue was designed by Werner E. Noffke in 1913 as his family home, and he lived in the house with his family from 1914 to 1923. The project included the restoration of all masonry, the reconstruction of the roof using the original red-clay tiles and supplementing them with identical salvaged tiles, the recreation of non-repairable intricate copper eavestroughs and rain directors as well as the restoration of the interior, the original garage and the small storage building. The jury noted: “Scrupulous attention was paid to historical evidence, and to the use of historical materials.” The house at 20 Clemow Avenue is part of the Clemow Estate East Heritage Conservation District, which is designated under Part V of the Ontario Heritage Act.
St. Alban’s Anglican Church
Award of Merit
Category: Restoration
Address: 454 King Edward Avenue
St. Alban’s church was designed by renowned architect Thomas Fuller and completed by architect King Arnoldi in 1877. The building is an excellent example of Gothic Revival and is one of Ottawa’s most historic churches. The project undertook repairs and restoration to maintain and stabilize exterior as well as interior elements. The jury noted: “The restoration project carefully addressed a broad range of structural and material deficiencies while also preserving historical fabric, including windows and doors. Inside, the building is renewed for use by the community.” The building is designated under Part IV of the Ontario Heritage Act.
68 Park Road
Award of Merit
Category: Infill
This house at 68 Park Road, which was built in 1917, had fallen into disrepair and required dramatic intervention. The new house sits on the footprint of the previous residence to maintain its relationship to the street. The house is thematically similar to the original structure and is finely executed in traditional materials. The jury noted: “This infill project in the Rockcliffe Village Heritage Conservation District responds to the District’s intention to retain a village atmosphere through respect for landscaping features, such as setbacks and plantings, and for new construction to continue existing built forms, heights, materials and the preference for natural materials.”
73 Crichton Street
Award of Merit
Category: Addition
The building at 73 Crichton Street was constructed in 1905 and is half of a two-storey, semi-detached brick house. The jury noted that the addition “is set back from the original structure and does not dominate it. It is clearly distinguishable from the original structure in its design and materials. It wraps around the house in a subtle manner, reserving the largest portion for the rear yard.” The project attempted to enhance the historic house and the streetscape and lane. The building is located in the New Edinburgh Heritage Conservation District and is designated under Part V of the Ontario Heritage Act.
Supreme Court of Canada
Award of Merit
Category: Other
Address: 301 Wellington St, Ottawa
This project involved the rehabilitation of the historic Art Deco public elevators and the creation of a new dedicated elevator for the Justices. Primary research, including correspondence between the Otis Elevator Company and the architect Ernest Cormier, was conducted. The new control panel complies with barrier-free design requirements, accommodates modern digital controls and maintains the heritage character of the building. The panel was cast from bronze using the lost-wax process. The jury commented: “The project was based upon solid historical research and physical evidence and addresses the restoration of elevators, a type of structural component that is often overlooked in heritage conservation. The elevators have been returned as small gems in one of Canada’s most noble buildings.”
Heritage Designation Plaques
The installation of commemorative plaques on properties designated under Parts IV and V of the Ontario Heritage Act demonstrates the City of Ottawa’s commitment to preserving and interpreting its cultural heritage resources. Bronze plaques provide a short bilingual description of the heritage significance of each property and are attached to the designated building or mounted in a public place in a heritage conservation district.
Burpee House (1908) - Designated Heritage Property 2011: This house was built for Lawrence J. Burpee, a well-known Ottawa scholar, author and civil servant, who lived here until his death in 1946. Burpee was instrumental in the development of Canada’s national library. The house is a prominent example of Edwardian Classicism, popular in Canada from 1900 to 1930. Features of this style include the high hipped roof, deep overhanging eaves and bargeboards, two-storey front porch and large pedimented gable.
Ruins of Old St. Mary’s Anglican Church and Cemetery (1825-1827) - Designated Heritage Property 2014: Old St. Mary’s Anglican Church is a picturesque ruin. It was constructed in 1825-1827 by Hamnett Kirkes Pinhey as part of Horaceville, which he had modelled upon English country estates of the era. Designed to evoke a medieval parish church, it featured ogee arched windows and doors inspired by the Gothic style. Early settlers, including the Pinhey family, are interred in the cemetery. The church was replaced by new St. Mary’s on the Sixth Line in 1909.
Simard House (1884) - Designated Heritage Property 1979: The Simard House was built by Olivier Simard, a carpenter. It is a one-and-a-half-storey wood frame house featuring a mansard roof, dormers and one-storey bay window. The two-storey tower and the entranceway with diagonal cladding are later additions. In its overall exterior appearance, this building is a good example of a modest, Second Empire-style house. Saved from demolition by neglect in 2011, the building’s restoration was completed in 2014.
478 Albert Street (1874) - Designated Heritage Property 2014:
This house was designed for, and likely by, Thomas Seaton Scott, an architect whose work included the 1874 MacKenzie Tower of the West Block of Parliament. Designed in the Second Empire style, the building features a mansard roof, an ornate entrance, a second-storey elliptical porch and distinct triangular bay windows. Later residents included the Victorian Order of Nurses and the Sisters of Service.
Église Ste-Anne (1873) - Designated Heritage Property 1978: Église Ste-Anne was designed by Quebec City architect J. P. Lecourt in 1873, shortly after he arrived in Ottawa. With its steeply pitched roof, symmetrical façade, arched windows and doors and central steeple, it is reminiscent of traditional churches in Québec. Historically, the parish played an important role in the social and cultural life of the Francophone Roman Catholics in Lowertown. In 2012, St. Clement Parish moved in, ensuring a continued role in the community.
Briarcliffe Heritage Conservation District - Designated Heritage Conservation District in 2013: Briarcliffe is a rare, intact example of a mid-20th century Modern neighbourhood. It was developed between 1961 and 1969 by the Briarcliffe Partnership, a building cooperative founded in 1959. The four partners purchased the 20 acres of rocky, forested land that are now Briarcliffe Drive, Kindle Court and Kindle Court Park. Architect Walter Schreier, a founding partner, established covenants to ensure design cohesion and preservation of the landscape. Houses were architect-designed and sensitively sited on large lots, allowing nature to dominate. Briarcliffe features a remarkable collection of experimental houses that capture the forward-thinking optimism of the post-war era. Several notable architects, including James Strutt, Paul Schoeler, Brian Barkham, Alex Heaton and Matthew Stankiewicz designed houses that contribute to Briarcliffe’s distinctive Modernist character.
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