[Keith P.]

Frankly, this all sounds like a bunch of hand-wringing over not very much at all.

The suggestion that the decrepit wooden firetrap that was once on the site of The Vic should have been somehow saved is a good example of that. It was mildly interesting design-wise - perhaps unique in that respect in this city given that most of the old buildings the heritage people try to save are simple unremarkable wooden boxes - but even at that it was very far gone and uneconomical to do anything with. What replaced it is so much better that it is difficult to put into words.

The recent example of St Mary's demolishing the Infant's home is perhaps different in some ways but in reality I lived a block away from that thing for 7 years, walked past it often, and never once thought it anything special nor that it should be somehow restored. It was to me just a rather unattractive run-down old building. That, I think, is the problem. These buildings are worthy candidates only to a very small number of people. They aren't the NY Public Library or Penn Station, grand examples of iconic design. People generally don't miss them when they're gone because they didn't impress while they stood there.

I think there is an interesting parallel here that hasn't been discussed to my knowledge. Just as the old buildings that are being demolished were unremarkable examples of the times, and were usually simple boxes that carried minimal architectural interest, the new buildings that are slowly replacing them follow the same pattern of mediocre design. Perhaps it is a function of Halifax's economy or culture that we do not (and seldom have) demanded good design and quality construction. Build it cheap, build it to look like nothing special, use the lowest-cost materials. That seems to be our past and our present.