Council recently resolved to inquire into possibilities of acquiring the Aurora Armouries.
Last night a report was submitted behind closed doors. It's odd how speedily some directions are followed.
The report confidential. You can't know what Council knows.
Except what you already know and with a little digging you can discover.
The land was given to Queen Victoria for a drill shed. For men to come there and march and counter march .present arms ,stand to attention, stand down , fall down on one knee and don't shoot until you see the whites of their eyes.
It was a time men marched into battle. An American invasion was on the horizon. Queen's York Rangers had their beginnings in New Hampshire under the name of Rogers Rangers ,they were an expeditionary force, Had there been an invasion, who's to say, it might have been the Rogers Rangers soon to become Queen's York Rangers.
But I digress ... the drill shed sits within lot lines of the property given to the Queen for a nominal sum in at that time sterling currency. Probably a shilling. Maybe
one and sixpence.
So.... facts established... land was given to the Old Queen for next to nothing For a hundred years the Feds have had free use of it.
Zoning would be unheard of . Current use would be non-conforming.
No property attached .No potential for adaptive re-use.
No parking possible. Inadequate side yards. No rear yard. No space for planting to protect the neighbours.
None of the normal requirements. Like I said...non-conforming.
The Department of National Defence recently sought heritage designation for the building. The town obliged.
One wonders....why would they do that?
A restrictive bylaw registered against title. No change can be made that would change the character
of the building.
What character ?
It's a drill shed.
The only thing remarkable is that it's still upright.
Now the question for readers to ponder ...what is the value of a property without potential use in the private sector...that owes nothing to the public sector. ???
There will likely be a test on this question.
Wednesday 18 June 2014
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8 comments:
History.
Love the story.
Thanks 4 bringing it 2 my attention.
I'd fight 4 that building.
It represents what history in Aurora is about.
Like Aurora's bunker.
Tell us that story, please.
"Now the question for readers to ponder ...what is the value of a property without potential use in the private sector...that owes nothing to the public sector. ???"
There is a former drill hall in Newmarket (albeit not as old and is bigger). It serves well now.
My initial guess would be that this is linked to the value of the land.
Off topic
The Barrie area is a mess this morning. Storm seems to have taken the same path north as it did that last time when it went through the marsh, up 400 & took out the horse racing place.
Grow-Op for medicinal pot ?
How can anyone just dismiss an historical “treasure” like the drill shed? I think the Hydro fund should suffice. But of course….A study will be needed with a consultant attached.
9:19
Power off, all the trees around the hi-school are MIA, exams postponed, school full of people & pets.
A question back at you, E. Are you allowed to tell us if a building inspector has visited the drill shed & determined its condition. Or are we supposed to just accept it the way we do with Hillary, not being sure about the true state of the structure ?
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