Mark Preece Family House - Page 3

matt602 · #1 Posted **Dec 5, 2008, 12:26 PM**

Absolutely horrible. When I heard about this I was devastated. I was so excited to see this project finished. It would have been a catalyst for that stretch of Barton.

hammergirl · #2 Posted **Dec 5, 2008, 2:27 PM**

Such a terrible loss. I guess we should be thankful though that the house hadn't opened yet and there weren't any families staying there.

They sound like they want to rebuild and I'm sure they will.

adam · #3 Posted **Dec 5, 2008, 9:48 PM**

Good thing they are rebuilding for the sake of the families who will be staying there. Bad thing we've lost a heritage building that can NEVER be replaced.

SteelTown · #4 Posted **Dec 16, 2008, 11:16 PM**

It's arson

matt602 · #5 Posted **Dec 5, 2008, 9:46 PM**

Went by today to have a look at the damage. It was gut wrenching. I can't see how they could possibly restore the building even if they wanted to. The entire second floor is gone/collapsed into the first floor. The place is done.

matt602 · #6 Posted **Dec 17, 2008, 2:09 AM**

Source?

SteelTown · #7 Posted **Dec 17, 2008, 2:50 AM**

CH News

highwater · #8 Posted **Dec 17, 2008, 7:53 AM**

F*ck. F*ck, f*ck, f*ck. Who would do such a thing? I hope they catch the f*ckers.

omro · #9 Posted **Dec 17, 2008, 8:27 AM**

Am just reading about this for the first time

How truly awful. Both my mother and I walked past that building several times during our visit in October and both commented on how great it was looking and what a great purpose for a building so close to the hospital.

I hope that whoever is responsible is made to seriously pay for their actions. I'd really like to know what their motivation, beyond pure evil, was for destroying such a well intended building. I also hope that the building is salvageable in some way and can be restored again, rather than lost forever.

SteelTown · #10 Posted **Dec 17, 2008, 12:09 PM**

Arson blamed in Preece House fire
Investigators reviewing video at scene of historic home blaze

December 17, 2008
Jackson Hayes
The Hamilton Spectator
http://www.thespec.com/News/Local/article/483226

Investigators believe arson is to blame for the fire that tore through the Mark Preece Family House earlier this month.

Arson Detective Marco DelConte said yesterday that police are reviewing video from surveillance cameras at the scene but would not elaborate on the evidence and why arson is suspected.

Fire officials at the time of the blaze said it started in the basement but DelConte would not confirm that.

For the members of the Mark Preece Family House board of directors, the news came as a sad continuation in an already tough month.

"It was the 21st when we lost Mark," Lisa Tittley said, referring to the 11-year anniversary of her late husband's death, which is just a few days away.

"I'm sad that some individuals did this, but it's not going to stop the resolve of the board and the community at large and our donors," she said. "We will rebuild."

The historic stone-walled building on Barton Street went up in flames around 5:30 a.m. on Dec. 4.

Crews were renovating the 132-year-old structure into a family house for people with loved ones in critical care at nearby Hamilton General.

Owned by Hamilton Health Sciences and leased for $2 a year, the project was in honour of ICU physician Mark Preece, who died of melanoma in 1997.

His family and friends had spent a decade raising funds and organizing this project and were "mere months" away from opening.

Sandy Craik, board chair and Mark's best man more than a decade earlier, said engineering and architectural crews are still assessing the building but there is hope much can be salvaged.

"We are gathering a list of what is needed," he said, adding that the goal is to rebuild the current site and they are still calculating the cost of the inferno.

Craik felt the building has become emblematic of Preece.

"He never gave up, right until the very end. Now you have this building sitting there with beautiful walls and a strong foundation that won't give up," he said. "It is strong and well built and would provide shelter for people who couldn't do it for themselves."

Anyone with information is asked to call police at 905-540-5085.

markbarbera · #11 Posted **Dec 17, 2008, 7:21 PM**

The cynic in me feels the need to point out the arson happened within days of the building receiving its heritage designation, and its owner (Hamilton Health Sciences) was fighting against its designation.

matt602 · #12 Posted **Dec 18, 2008, 1:01 PM**

It's in very bad condition. The entire second floor is gone, including a lot of the stonework. It could still be saved with a lot of dedication, but it's pretty bad. I think the course of action that will be taken is some kind of facade inclusion into a new building, at this point.

omro · #13 Posted **Dec 18, 2008, 1:21 PM**

That's such a shame, I walked past that building most of the days during my visit, it looked like it was going to be a great restoration.

Worse still, the people who were counting on it for accommodation while they visit their sick loved ones. Whoever did this truly lacks humanity.

matt602 · #14 Posted **Dec 30, 2008, 12:22 AM**

To update on the building, the entire 2nd floor has been scraped off. Looks like they intend to restore the main floor, somehow incorporating it into a new structure.

SteelTown · #15 Posted **Jan 9, 2009, 10:10 PM**

Things Are Looking Up For Mark Preece Family House
Ken Mann
1/9/2009

Spirits are running higher among supporters of the Mark Preece Family House.

Their dream of building a haven for families of patients at Hamilton General Hospital has recieved a major boost.

The Chedoke Health Corporation has given the project a 100 thousand dollar donation, just over one month after the home they were building on Barton Street East was burned to the ground by an arsonist.

A spokespeson for the Mark Preece Family House Board of Directors call the donation a gift that will serve as a "rallying cry" to friends and supporters.

Executive Director Elaine Scrivener adds that it's too early to say if they'll be able to meet their original goal of completing the project by this fall.

emge · #16 Posted **Jan 10, 2009, 4:49 AM**

good, good, good. so glad to hear about that.

SteelTown · #17 Posted **Jan 22, 2009, 12:12 PM**

Man charged in $1m Preece House fire
Dr. Preece's widow: 'I feel badly' for suspect arrested in arson

January 22, 2009
Mark McNeil
The Hamilton Spectator
http://www.thespec.com/News/Local/article/499939

A 35-year-old man has been charged with arson in the $1-million Mark Preece Family House fire last month.

Police are being tight-lipped about the investigation, but it is known that investigators reviewed video footage from nearby surveillance cameras.

The residence for out-of-town families of seriously ill patients at Hamilton General Hospital was under construction when the fire broke out Dec. 4. It was being built from a derelict 132-year-old former machine shop on Barton Street, west of the hospital, and slated to open later this year.

In recent years the building was known as a refuge for squatters and drug users. Lisa Tittley, widow of Dr. Mark Preece for whom the house is named, said: "It was a scary looking building ... It needed a total new roof when we received it. We had to do a huge (hypodermic) needle cleanup inside."

Tittley said police contacted her yesterday to tell her about the arrest.

"I feel very mixed emotions," she said. "I don't know if someone was trying to keep warm or trying to put it on fire on purpose. The police haven't told me anything.

"I don't know what to say. I feel badly for this person."

Charged with arson to property, two counts of breach of probation and failing to comply with an undertaking is Jose Manuel DeSousa of no fixed address.

SteelTown · #18 Posted **Feb 11, 2009, 12:13 PM**

Burned out Preece House no longer of heritage value

February 11, 2009
Mark McNeil
The Hamilton Spectator
http://www.thespec.com/News/Local/article/511300

The 132-year-old former Smart Turner building on Barton Street East, which suffered $1 million in damage in a December fire, is no longer of heritage interest.

At the time of the fire, the building was going through extensive renovations to convert it into the Mark Preece Family House, a temporary accommodation for families of loved ones in critical care at the nearby Hamilton General Hospital.

Police have charged a man with arson in connection with the Dec. 4 fire.

The Hamilton Municipal Heritage Committee was looking into whether the property should receive heritage designation before the fire broke out.

But Elizabeth Manganelli, the director of economic development with Hamilton Health Sciences, says now "it is our understanding that with what little is left of the original building, heritage designation is no longer appropriate."

Art French, chair of the municipal heritage committee, says "there is very little of heritage value left.

"There are a few walls. That's about it."

Manganelli said negotiations are still continuing with the insurance company and engineers are assessing whether the remains of the building can be salvaged or whether the structure will have to be torn down to make way for a new building.

The family house, which is planned to accommodate up to 14 families at a time, is in honour of Dr. Mark Preece, an ICU doctor at the Hamilton General who died at the age of 38 in 1997 of melanoma.

markbarbera · #19 Posted **Feb 11, 2009, 5:25 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by markbarbera

The cynic in me feels the need to point out the arson happened within days of the building receiving its heritage designation, and its owner (Hamilton Health Sciences) was fighting against its designation.

Quote:

Originally Posted by SteelTown

Man charged in $1m Preece House fire
Dr. Preece's widow: 'I feel badly' for suspect arrested in arson

January 22, 2009
Mark McNeil
The Hamilton Spectator
http://www.thespec.com/News/Local/article/499939

A 35-year-old man has been charged with arson in the $1-million Mark Preece Family House fire last month.

Police are being tight-lipped about the investigation, but it is known that investigators reviewed video footage from nearby surveillance cameras.

The residence for out-of-town families of seriously ill patients at Hamilton General Hospital was under construction when the fire broke out Dec. 4. It was being built from a derelict 132-year-old former machine shop on Barton Street, west of the hospital, and slated to open later this year.

In recent years the building was known as a refuge for squatters and drug users. Lisa Tittley, widow of Dr. Mark Preece for whom the house is named, said: "It was a scary looking building ... It needed a total new roof when we received it. We had to do a huge (hypodermic) needle cleanup inside."

Tittley said police contacted her yesterday to tell her about the arrest.

"I feel very mixed emotions," she said. "I don't know if someone was trying to keep warm or trying to put it on fire on purpose. The police haven't told me anything.
"I don't know what to say. I feel badly for this person."

Charged with arson to property, two counts of breach of probation and failing to comply with an undertaking is Jose Manuel DeSousa of no fixed address.

Quote:

Originally Posted by SteelTown

Burned out Preece House no longer of heritage value

February 11, 2009
Mark McNeil
The Hamilton Spectator
http://www.thespec.com/News/Local/article/511300

The 132-year-old former Smart Turner building on Barton Street East, which suffered $1 million in damage in a December fire, is no longer of heritage interest.

At the time of the fire, the building was going through extensive renovations to convert it into the Mark Preece Family House, a temporary accommodation for families of loved ones in critical care at the nearby Hamilton General Hospital.

Police have charged a man with arson in connection with the Dec. 4 fire.

The Hamilton Municipal Heritage Committee was looking into whether the property should receive heritage designation before the fire broke out.

But Elizabeth Manganelli, the director of economic development with Hamilton Health Sciences, says now "it is our understanding that with what little is left of the original building, heritage designation is no longer appropriate."

Art French, chair of the municipal heritage committee, says "there is very little of heritage value left.

"There are a few walls. That's about it."

Manganelli said negotiations are still continuing with the insurance company and engineers are assessing whether the remains of the building can be salvaged or whether the structure will have to be torn down to make way for a new building.

The family house, which is planned to accommodate up to 14 families at a time, is in honour of Dr. Mark Preece, an ICU doctor at the Hamilton General who died at the age of 38 in 1997 of melanoma.

Surely just a coincidence. A very convenient one for HHS, because now it has its avoided having to deal with a heritage building. Forunately they had the building well insured so a brand new replacement for the heritage building can be built.

highwater · #20 Posted **Feb 11, 2009, 6:52 PM**

Trying to resist the tinfoil hat, but it sure doesn't look good.