Latest plan to restore Somerset House looks to start construction this fall
City staff, councillors see hopeful signs the owner is serious this time
Arthur White-Crummey · CBC News
Posted: Sep 13, 2023 4:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 6 hours ago
There's a sudden rush of guarded optimism that work to restore one of Ottawa's most prominent symbols of urban blight could begin as early as this fall.
City council's built heritage committee voted Tuesday to endorse a plan to restore Somerset House, a 127-year-old heritage building in Centretown that has sat vacant since a partial collapse in 2007.
It's the third such plan, but the architect behind the latest design told the committee this time is different.
"This time we have a very strong mandate on behalf of the client to proceed," said Richard Chmiel. "If we can get our permits by October, they'd be willing to start construction this fall."
His design would put a three-storey red-brick addition on the site of the collapsed eastern wing, while restoring the existing heritage structure.
It would bring back a long-lost bay window and repair the decayed turret at the corner of Bank and Somerset streets.
Somerset Coun. Ariel Troster said the plan is neither perfect nor ambitious, but would fit well in the community.
In her view, anything is better than an "eyesore" on one of her ward's most prominent corners. She said it's the building she hears about most in the neighbourhood.
"Members of the community are very anxious to see this move forward. Somerset House has been a blight on the urban landscape," she said.
"I am choosing to be cautiously optimistic, but I also understand when neighbours are skeptical about this one."
That skepticism comes after a long history of false starts, building code violations and fears the structure could be lost.
David Flemming of Heritage Ottawa has shared it, but he now sees a "tasteful" design and signs it might finally happen.
"I think it is likely to go forward," he said. "It's very different now. They seem to have ironed out all the problems after the 2017 approval."
Chmiel said that last proposal collapsed amid a dispute with city engineers over the seismic capability of the building. In his view, some of the previous designs were also more complicated.
"We went through iterations where we tried to do a six-storey addition, a nine-storey addition, but the whole principle of 'keep it simple stupid' — we're trying to do that, because the client is not a sophisticated developer," he said.
He told the committee his client now has a "definite intention" to proceed, and has already sought a building permit to move forward. That didn't happen the last time around.
If the permit doesn't come in October, though, he said construction would likely be postponed until spring. It would then take 12 to 18 months to finish, Chmiel estimated.
A lot has to happen before the city can grant that permit. The plan must go before planning committee, and then council. Staff must consider a site plan control application.
Heritage planning manager Lesley Collins said it's "feasible" to wrap all that up this fall.
"I think the applicant is quite enthusiastic and optimistic about moving this project forward," said Collins. "We're seeing more action than we've seen in many years on this file, so the submission of a building permit application for instance is, I think, a very optimistic sign."
Rideau-Rockcliffe Coun. Rawlson King, who chairs the built heritage committee, was feeling that same tempered enthusiasm as members voted in favour of the plan.
"Today is a positive step but we're only cautiously optimistic, because there's been plenty of talk, but what residents now expect is action," King said.
"It's now incumbent on the applicant himself to work toward saving Somerset House."
He noted that the committee's endorsement came with conditions. The owner will have to take conservation measures, submit monitoring reports on the building's condition and provide samples of the materials slated for use on the project.
If council approves, the heritage permit would expire in two years.
Flemming said this should "definitely" be the owner's last chance to restore the building. He said the city would find a buyer if it stepped in to expropriate and restore the building itself.
"The problem with expropriation is it's a political decision and there was never the political will," he said.
Troster said the city was close to expropriation during the last term of council, but pulled back. She said it would be an expensive last resort.
If this plan doesn't save Somerset House, it could be time for last resorts. She wants to see a restored Somerset House "whatever it takes."
"Ultimately, we want the owner to do the work. We don't want the city to have to do the work, but we still have that final tool in our toolbox," she said.
"If this starts creeping any closer to 20 years of neglect, then I think it'll be time for the city to take drastic action."
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/somerset-house-restoration-ottawa-1.6964335
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