234 O'Connor Street

234 Cooper seen from Somerset Street W.

   From "Application to demolish 234 O'Connor Street, a property designated under Part V of the Ontario Heritage Act and located in the Centretown Heritage Conservation District" (full document here)

"The building at 234 O’Connor Street is a two-and-one-half storey, wood frame, brick clad structure with a front gable roof. It is located on the west side of O'Connor Street between Somerset and Cooper Streets. Based on fire insurance plans, the building was initially constructed between 1879 and 1901 with two, two-storey additions. It is identified as a Category 2 building in the Centretown Heritage Conservation District (HCD). The upper levels of the building were damaged by fire and it has been vacant for approximately 15 years. There is a parking lot on the south side of the building..."[The parking lot comprises two lots, 236 O'Connor and 311 Somerset West.]

   From 13 October 2016 Ottawa Sun article by Matthew Pearson (full article archived here)...

"The city's built-heritage committee on Thursday denied a developer's request to tear down a vacant house in the Centretown heritage conservation district.
Gemstone Developments wanted permission to demolish the red-brick building at 234 O'Connor St. and replace it with a temporary park...

Committee members considered two separate structural assessments — one submitted by the owners and one conducted on the city’s behalf. The reports identified similar issues but offered differing opinions on the extent of the damage. The owner’s report ultimately called for demolition, but the city’s report, prepared by John G. Cooke and Associates, concluded the building is “reasonably repairable.”
That's the same position the heritage department and Somerset Coun. Catherine McKenney took.

Gemstone only purchased the building about a year ago, but McKenney said the building had not been properly maintained long before that. "It may not be your neglect, but it is demolition by neglect," she said.

The committee's vice-chair Barry Padolsky said he supported the staff recommendation reluctantly because the city has done very little to address the building's deteriorating condition over the years..."

   In our photo, the belfry of Dominion Chalmers United Church peers above #234's roofline. In the distance and to the left, the ghostly, Carrara-clad towers of Esplanade Laurier mark the skyline while to the right, Plaza 234 (the "old" EDC building) shows off its stripes*.

adapted from Goad, January 1888 sheet #53

   Goad (1888) shows 234 Cooper (which I've highlighted in pink) completely built, including the two rear extensions and a small detached shed. Both houses directly to the south have since been demolished.

   An early (likely the first) resident of the house was one Colin Dewar (Might, 1901) a bookkeeper with the Ottawa Water Works Department, this at a time when that office's duties included sprinkling the streets in summer to keep the dust down to a dull roar.

   I can find no more recent discussions of significance — #234 quietly awaits its fate.

*An earlier version of this post misidentified Plaza 234 as Place Bell. I must endeavour to sniff less glue on weekdays.