NEWS |
THE OBSERVER | Saturday, May 16, 2009
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EDSS athletes take to the track and the field................................................»16 Reviving the art of dry stone walls
»14 VOLUME 14, ISSUE 19
SATURDAY, MAY 16, 2009
» lAnDMArK iS HiSTOrY
www.ObserverXtra.com
Getting a jump on the planting season
Steddick Hotel could soon be torn down Owner seeks demolition permit, plans expansion of Mac’s convenience store Once a landmark and now an eyesore, the Steddick Hotel could disappear from the downtown Elmira streetscape in the next few weeks. Property owner Becker Milk Company has hired a contractor and applied for a permit to demolish the building. A long time coming – Woolwich Township has been pressing the owners to tear it down for years – the move is part of plans to redevelop the site to accommodate an expanded Mac’s convenience store and rework the entire lot at the corner of Arthur and Wyatt streets. Admitting “it’s a bit of a disaster, that building,” company representative Pat Gudgeon said in an interview this week that recently completed work to the interior of the building, including the removal of asbestos, has paved the way for the demolition to proceed. As soon as the township issues a demolition permit, final preparations will get underway, with the building coming down sometime in the next three or four weeks, he added. Dan Kennaley, Woolwich’s director of engineering and planning, welcomed the news, as the old hotel has become increasingly problematic, not just presenting an unappealing sight. The deteriorating condition of the building, and the frequent break-ins by vandals, has the Woolwich Fire Department worried about the fire hazard and the safety of those who enter the building illegally, believed to be area youths. The township has received a demolition permit application from Becker Milk, but is awaiting an engineering report about the stability of the building’ footings because of the proximity to the neighbouring structure. Once the paperwork See STEDDICK »06
PHOTO | JOni MilTenburg
STEVE KANNON
LOTS OF WAYS TO GO GrEEN Marlyne King and her grandson Henry check out the flowers in a greenhouse at Floralane Produce and Auction last Saturday.
No benefit, no bill, Woolwich councillor says of transit plan Region wants to spend $790 million for electric trains, fast buses STEVE KANNON Accruing none of the benefits, residents of Waterloo Region’s townships should bear none of the costs of an expensive rapid tran-
sit scheme, says Woolwich Coun. Ruby Weber. The costs and potential benefits were uppermost on councillors’ minds as Thomas Schmidt, the region’s commissioner of transportation and
environmental services, explained the preferred options and the environmental assessment process that will follow the region’s decision. A vote is expected June 24. Current plans call for
spending $710 million to build a light rail transit system between Conestoga Mall in Waterloo to Fairview Park mall in Kitchener. Electric trains, connected to overhead See TRANSIT »06