TOP 10 OF 2019: #4 Ottawa residents continue to fight Château Laurier addition

Rendition after rendition and many in Ottawa are still not pleased with the design of a proposed addition to the Château Laurier, and protests, petitions, city council motions, threats of lawsuits, and a committee ruling in 2019 have at least halted the project. 

After rolling through a couple of different design options in 2018, another was proposed in February of 2019, including more limestone in order to blend in better with the original structure. That image was scrapped.

In May, another draft for a seven-story, 147-room addition in a contemporary style at the rear of the existing building was proposed by Larco Investments.

Councillor Mathieu Fleury was still unhappy with the revamped design and said in a release that, “this new building, or shall we say addition, would be welcomed in most areas of our city and the high-end use of materials like limestone and bronze would be embraced in any neighbourhood. However, this contemporary addition to the historic and iconic Château Laurier doesn’t fit with this landmark.”

But in June, city staff backed the design, writing that the project's design “is contemporary in expression and proposed to be seven storeys in height, below the eaves line of the hotel roof to allow it to remain the dominant element on the site.”

The design proposal, much like the ones previous, got hit with a slew of negative feedback from the public, as many people felt the glass structure didn't compliment the historic hotel's stone, castle-like tone. 

The city showing support for the design turned up the temperature of the debate surrounding the city's historical landmark. Heritage Ottawa dubbed the proposed design, “the most disgraceful act of heritage vandalism of our generation.” 

To make matters worse for those fighting the proposed addition, the National Capital Commission said it couldn't do anything to stop the project from moving forward.

Rideau-Vanier City Councillor Mathieu Fleury wanted to put a stop to the proposed project by pulling a heritage permit in July, which was put in place to allow for the addition. But Mayor Jim Watson was pushing to move the latest design forward, and allow the renovations to take place. 

A local group, Friends of the Chateau Laurier, backed Fleury's motion, and even hired to lawyer to help voice their concerns about the project. Co-founder of the group Penny Collenette said more than just the look of the hotel was at stake. 

“The loss of the views, which is very important for us in terms of that [world heritage] designation from UNESCO of the [Rideau] canal,” she explains. “Because if we lose the views around, in the panorama, there is a possibility we could lose that UNESCO world heritage designation.”

That's when one of Ottawa's most internationally recognizable comedians came back to the city to voice his displeasure with a proposed design for an addition to the Château Laurier.

Tom Green said he spent much of his youth in downtown Ottawa, especially skateboarding at Major's Hill Park. He wrote on Twitter, “It is time for our elected officials to stand with the people and reject this architectural abomination and demand that it be redesigned to add harmony to our beautiful city.”

About 200 residents took to Major's Hill Park for a picnic late in July, hosted by Green, looking to draw attention to the current plan for the addition at the historic hotel. 

But Fleury's motion was defeated and the owner of the Château said it got heritage and site plan approvals for its addition, it had presented new designs to the public on five occasions, and it was ready to move forward on the project.

Ottawa Centre MP Catherine McKenna spoke out against the proposed design of the hotel's expansion, which prompted a response from Larco Investments:

“We can appreciate that Minister McKenna is speaking out, but we have already had the discussion with her and have explained that this fifth public iteration is the last one as we have received from City Council and Staff the heritage approval as well as the site plan approval. Larco Investments are now poised to move forward on enhancing the hotel's economic sustainability.”

After city council's decision not to revoke Larco Investments heritage permit for the Chateau Laurier addition, Heritage Ottawa said it started looking into what legal steps it can take to stop the project.

Heritage Ottawa, with the help of the Friends of the Chateau Laurier, launched a fundraising campaign to fight the proposed new addition design, but by the end of August, Heritage Ottawa was still looking to raise almost $100,000 in order to legally challenge the proposed project.

The heritage organization planned to file a challenge to the City of Ottawa's approvals under the Ontario Heritage Act in the Ontario Superior Court. It also planned to file a written submission on the merits of the “minor variance” application by the owner to the Committee of Adjustment.

Finally, on September 27, the city's Committee of Adjustment denied Larco Investments' expansion application because they did not find it to be a minor variance. 

The design requirements moved upper floors too close to Major's Hill Park, within centimetres, when Ottawa's bylaw stated that it would have to be at least three metres away from the park's property line. 

This halted the expansion — something that Heritage Ottawa and Rideau-Vanier councillor Mathieu Fleury were hoping for. 

“I'm super happy,” said councillor Fleury. “The committee recognized the issue relating to compatibility and relating to significance of the historic site.”

“The community wants to work with [Larco] to find a solution that would be compatible, that would fit in and reflect the panache and the importance of this iconic property,” Fleury noted. 

The lawyer that represents Heritage Ottawa, Marc Denhez, explained that his group would be watching Larco Investments very closely to see what their next move is. 

That move came on October 17, when the owner of the Château Laurier appealed the city committee's rejection of part of its plan to build the addition on the north side of the iconic hotel.

Larco Investments, through its affiliate Capital Hotel GP Inc., filed an appeal to the province's Local Planning Appeals Tribunal.

“We have concerns with the decision of the Committee,” wrote Michael Polowin, Heritage Ottawa, in a statement to 1310 NEWS. “However, the appeal will ensure that Heritage Ottawa has party status in the hearing of Larco's appeal.”

A date to hear the appeals has not been set, but Polowin said Heritage Ottawa doesn't expect a hearing to be scheduled for at least six months.