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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCSD-15-038 - Mayfair Withdrawal of Intent to DesignateStaff Report iTC f I N R CotilmCInity"Services Department w kitchenerca REPORT TO: DATE OF MEETING: SUBMITTED BY: PREPARED BY: WARD(S) INVOLVED: DATE OF REPORT: REPORT NO.: Council April 23, 2015 Mike Seiling, CET, CBCO Director of Building /Chief Building Official, (519 -741- 2200, ext. 7669) Mike Seiling, CET, CBCO Director of Building /Chief Building Official Ward 10 April 21, 2015 CSD -15 -038 SUBJECT: WITHDRAWAL OF NOTICE OF INTENTION TO DESIGNATE 11 YOUNG STREET (FORMER MAYFAIR HOTEL, PART 10 ON PLAN 58R- 16710) RECOMMENDATION: That pursuant to Section 29(6)(b) of the Ontario Heritage Act, the Notice of Intention to Designate the property municipally known as 11 Young Street (former Mayfair Hotel) — legally described as Part of Lots 1 and 2, Plan 362, City of Kitchener, being Part 10 on Plan 58R -16710 — be hereby withdrawn, as outlined in Community Services Department report CSD -15 -038; and further, That the Clerk be directed to serve a notice of the withdrawal on the property owner, as well as the Ontario Heritage Trust, and publish said notice in a newspaper having general circulation in the City of Kitchener. BACKGROUND: Over the weekend of April 11, 2015, a water service break occurred flooding the basement of 11 Young Street (former Mayfair Hotel) and damaging the foundation wall along Young Street. The Chief Building Official (CBO) completed a site inspection of the building on Monday, April 13. Based on the results of the site inspection and the expert advice of two separate structural engineering consultants, on Thursday, April 16, 2015 the CBO issued an Order to Remedy an Unsafe Building under section 15.9 of the Building Code Act (BCA) which calls for demolition of the property at 11 Young Street as a result of "unsafe and unstable" conditions and "immediate life safety concerns ", many of which are unrelated to and predate the flood of April 11. A special meeting of Council has been convened so that Council may withdraw the Notice of Intention to Designate 11 Young Street (former Mayfair Hotel, Part 10 on Reference Plan 58R- 16710) as being of cultural heritage value under the Ontario Heritage Act. Withdrawal of this notice of intention is required before a demolition permit can be issued. With the withdrawal, a demolition permit on the property may be issued as early as April 27, 2015, with work to commence as soon as possible thereafter. * ** This information is available in accessible formats upon request. * ** Please call 519- 741 -2345 or TTY 1- 866 - 969 -9994 for assistance. REPORT: Circumstances Giving Rise to Determination of Unsafe Condition On Monday, April 13, the City's Chief Building Official (CBO) was notified to inspect 11 Young Street (the former Mayfair Hotel), after a break in underground water service pipe between the city valve and the building's Young Street foundation wall, which occurred on April 11. After learning of the damaged foundation wall the CBO directed the owner to hire a structural engineer to confirm the foundation condition and provide recommendations for the repairs. The CBO inspected the damage caused to the foundation wall and other structural deficiencies. His assessment was that the building met the BCA definition of being in an unsafe condition. In light of the foundation wall damage, other structural concerns, and the potential for risk to both building and public safety, the CBO ordered the closing of Young Street and fencing as a precaution while further investigation continued. In addition to the CBO directing the owner to hire a structural engineer, he also independently retained a structural engineer, on behalf of the City, to confirm the condition of the building and make recommendations for measures to remedy the unsafe condition. The City retained MTE Consultants, a well- respected and long- standing engineering firm serving southwestern Ontario. The City of Kitchener has previously retained MTE for a wide range of major structural projects over the past 15 or more years, including structural assessments on City -owned buildings. Kurt Ruhland, P. Eng. and MTE's Director of Building Structures Operations, conducted the structural analysis on the morning of April 15. Mr. Ruhland has served in the structural engineering consultancy field for the past 24 years and has provided engineering expertise in the preservation of important Ontario historic buildings. The findings of the two separate engineering consultants' reports confirmed the CBO's initial assessment of the building as being unsafe, as per section 15.9 (2) of the BCA, and both reports are in agreement that there are numerous structural deficiencies within the building — not solely related to the most recent damage to the foundation. According to the MTE Consultants' report, the building is in an "unsafe and unstable" condition, some of the deficiencies pose "immediate life safety concerns," and the only viable option to eliminate those concerns is the demolition of the building. The repair of any of the structural deficiencies isn't possible without jeopardizing the lives of workers, according to the report. Order to Remedy an Unsafe Building At 3 p.m. on Thursday, April 16, the CBO issued an Order to Remedy an Unsafe Building under section 15.9 of the BCA which calls for the demolition of the property at 11 Young Street to remove the unsafe condition. As part of the Order, on the morning of April 17, the owner erected secured hoarding around the building and Young Street to restrict access as a public safety precaution. The Order also states that the owner is to demolish the building under the guidance of a professional, on -site engineer. Until the unsafe condition is removed, a professional engineer is to submit daily reports on the building's condition to the CBO. As required by the Order a demolition permit application was filed with the City on April 21. An engineer's report outlining the structure and process of the demolition has not been submitted to date because the contractors bidding the work are responsible for completing it. The owner advised the City can expect the full report in 1 -2 days. The owner understands the demolition permit cannot be issued until the report is reviewed by City staff. The CBO is required to issue a permit per Section 8.(2) of the BCA unless the proposed demolition contravenes the BCA, Building Code or applicable law. The Building Code defines applicable law and includes Section 34 of the Ontario Heritage Act. Withdrawal of Notice of Intention to Designate the Property Council now needs to withdraw the Notice of Intention to Designate the property as being of cultural heritage value under the Ontario Heritage Act. Withdrawal of the notice is required before a demolition permit can be issued and work can proceed. The notice of intention was published during the time that the City owned the 11 Young Street property (2008). The City acquired the former Mayfair building in 2001 as part of an assembly of property formerly known as the Centre Block — now referred to as City Centre. The City's intent was always to sell the assembly of property for redevelopment with the intent of ensuring the preservation of the former Mayfair Hotel building at 11 Young Street. At the time the City acquired the property, 11 Young Street served as affordable housing on the upper floors and it housed a bar on the ground floor. The city retained Kitchener Housing Inc. to manage the rental housing component. The building became unoccupied in 2007, with all Kitchener Housing Inc. tenants relocated. Until the time the building was sold to the current owner in 2013, the City continued to exercise due care in maintaining it, ensuring heat and hydro services were adequate within the building, maintaining fire alarm monitoring, performing regular site visits and undertaking maintenance activities as required. Upon its sale by the City to Mayfair Hotel Development Corporation in 2013, City staff completed an inspection confirming there were no water leaks and no exposure of any portion of the building's interior to the elements. At that time, there was no way to know the extent of the structural deficiencies which have come to light over the past week because all of its interior finishes (e.g., multiple false ceilings, drywall, lathe and plaster, floor finishings, exterior fagade, etc.) were intact at the time of sale and were removed only recently by the current owner. It should be noted that 156 -158 King Street (former P. Hymmen Hardware) is an adjacent property to the former Mayfair Hotel at 11 Young Street. This property is owned by the same owner and the 158 King Street side shares a common party wall with 11 Young Street. Despite the fact that they have a common party wall, this property is not subject to the Order to Remedy an Unsafe Building issued by the CBO. The 156 -158 King Street property is the subject of a Notice of Intention to Designate under the Ontario Heritage Act and this continues to remain in effect. Preservation of Heritage Features City staff are working with the building owner to, wherever safe to do so, proceed with the demolition in a way that would salvage some key heritage features that were identified in the original Notice of Intention to Designate the property, including: Prior to the Demolition • Measured drawings of the exterior (in particular King and Young Street facades). • Detailed colour photographs of the exterior elevations and heritage attributes. At the time of Demolition • Salvage of the metal balustrade of the staircase, and if feasible the terrazzo treads. • Salvage of a sample of the heritage attributes from the fagade as follows: o One palette (approx. 500 bricks) of the brown brick • One palette (approx. 500 bricks) of the yellow brick • Four cast concrete pilaster capitals and one dozen window corner blocks • One example of each type of window voussoir and sill • One six foot section of the wood cornice with brackets Following the Demolition • Design and install a commemorative feature on the property, to include interpretive signage and that will incorporate where feasible, some of the heritage attributes salvaged from the demolition, as listed above. Heritage Kitchener will be involved in continued discussion about salvaging and preserving heritage features for the future and how those features could be reused in the redevelopment of the property. The committee is scheduled to discuss this issue at its May 5 meeting. Procedure for Issuing a Notice of Withdrawal As the Order from the CBO requires that 11 Young Street (former Mayfair Hotel) be demolished, the Notice of Intention to Designate the property under the Ontario Heritage Act must be withdrawn by Council so that the demolition permit can be issued. Section 29(6)(b) of the Ontario Heritage Act provides the process by which a Notice of Intention to designate a property may be withdrawn. It states that a notice of withdrawal shall be served on the property owner as well as the Ontario Heritage Trust, and shall be published in a newspaper having general circulation in the municipality. Pending Council's approval, Clerk's staff would issue the required notice and an ad would appear in the Saturday, April 25th edition of The Record. Unlike the process for issuing the Notice of Intention, the Act does not require any consultation with Heritage Kitchener regarding the Notice of Withdrawal. ALIGNMENT WITH CITY OF KITCHENER STRATEGIC PLAN: This action aligns with the strategic foundation of Effective and Efficient Government in the City's 2011 -2014 Strategic Plan. Under this specific foundation, the strategic direction for "Organizational Governance" outlines the City's responsibility to be "an organization that is aware, responsive and prepared to deal with emergency situations." FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS: None at this time. COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT: Inform: This report has been posted to the City's website with the agenda in advance of the Special Council meeting. Additionally, a dedicated webpage to provide updates and background information to the public was launched on Monday, April 13, 2015. The public can access the page to view the media release, the CBO's Order, a chronology of the Mayfair Hotel's history and Frequently Asked Questions. The web link was included in media stories and has been promoted through the City's social media channels. ACKNOWLEDGED BY: Dan Chapman, Deputy CAO, Finance and Corporate Services