The demolition of the 19th century house makes way for a condominium development at 3495 Innes Road, near Pagé Road. The building was of “heritage interest,” on Ottawa's heritage reference list but did not meet provincial criteria for designation, according to the Ontario Heritage Act.
Diego Elizondo, a local historian, said the house was built around 1870. "It is very rare. It is a large family farmhouse built of stone, and in those days most people could usually only afford wood." Elizondo also explained the house was one of the last remains of what used to be Saint-François rural community, now called Chapel Hill. "All the older buildings along Innes are gone now that all the box stores have been built," Elizondo said. "It is very important to protect these buildings," Elizondo said. Currently, the Butler House at 1445 St. Joseph Boulevard and Youville Farms are the only heritage buildings in Orléans.
Elizondo said the city should act faster to designate heritage buildings, and points to
St-Joseph Church, the community's oldest building which was originally built in 1870 and rebuilt in 1920. He says the city should designate important buildings with heritage status as soon as possible, not be kept on a waiting list.
City heritage planner Sally Coutts said the department conducted research to determine whether the house, previously owned by the Gauthier family, should merit designation. "We found that it did not meet the criteria, however we encouraged the building's retention. We would have preferred it be bought by someone who wanted to preserve it, but it was up to the owner in this case."
Coutts also noted the building appears to have originally been a wooden structure, with stones applied on the outside after time.
She said the city considers designating buildings with heritage status at the request of owners or area residents.
The demolition comes at a time when Orléans is celebrating 150 years since its founding.
