Guelph Arts Council Heritage Awards

Community Heritage Efforts Recongized

by Linda Craig

 

Once again, Guelph Arts Council has recognized the efforts of local property owners who have worked to put “new life” into their heritage buildings. The 1999 awards were presented on Monday, June 21, bringing to 96 the number of individuals, organizations, companies and institutions who have been honoured since 1977. Heritage Awards Committee Chair Anne Shute warmly congratulated the award recipients, and thanked all 1999 nominees for their appreciation of the importance of protecting local heritage, especially as this is reflected in their efforts to preserve, restore or develop their heritage properties.

Guelph Arts Council’s Bronze Plaque, which recognizes outstanding heritage efforts, was awarded for the Food Science Building at the University of Guelph. Unanimous in their decision, the jurors called the undertaking an excellent model of an institutional renovation sensitive to the heritage of a neo-Georgian style building, and a fine example of the integration of old and new. They also drew attention to the successful attempt to maintain the integrity of the original windows. Of particular note were the creation of the loft into usable space, the reconstruction of the cupola, and the adherence to the original elements
of the interior stairways in the re-creation of the balustrade, ironwork and railcaps.

The 1999 Downtown Heritage Award, which acknowledges restoration efforts completed in the Business Improvement Area within the past two years, was awarded to Lisa Calzonetti, proprietor of Carden Street Cafe, 40 Carden Street. The jurors felt that this property is an outstanding example of humanizing an otherwise banal building. They also commented on how this positive intervention vitalizes and strengthens the commercial streetscape of downtown Guelph. In particular, both the exterior and the interior of the cafe are fully connected and harmonized through the development of a strong, animated and colourful theme which has been carried over in the recent expansion to the adjacent premises.

A 1999 Honourable Mention – Residential was presented to Pat Weir for the sensitive restoration of her well-maintained 1875 brick and stone cottage at 72 Edinburgh Road North. In particular, the jurors were impressed with the fine integration of a board and batten addition which echoes interesting architectural details of the original home, such as the Florentine windows. They also remarked on the stripping of the paint from the soft brickwork, and the removal of a porch to expose the building’s original character.

Alan Ramsey, proprietor of Black Mustard, 16 Wyndham Street North, was the recipient of a 1999 Downtown Honourable Mention award. The jurors commented on the successful redevelopment of a retail property using historical materials and architectural features to create an aura of heritage. They praised the commendable effort to rediscover the building’s original materials and introduce complementary historical elements to convert the use of this heritage building to a new use as a restaurant.

Special thanks to jurors – Toronto architect Kent Rawson, local historian and recently retired history professor Gil Stelter, and local landscape architect Christopher Campbell; and to Heritage Awards Committee Members Jane Caspers, Nicholas Gunn, Melanie McLennan and Elton Yerex who along with Committee Chair Anne Shute have worked over the past year to identify sensitively-developed heritage properties in Guelph.

For the 1999 Heritage Awards program, Guelph Arts Council acknowledges the generous assistance of the Royal Bank Financial Group, Victoria Wood Development GP Inc., Colley Insurance, Guelph Mercury, Downtown Board of Management, and Moyer, Malak, Jackman & Rowles.