A few years ago, a student at Carleton University and Centretown resident, Emily Essex, wrote a Masters of Architecture thesis about the former Board of Education Administration building at 330 Gilmour Street. The building has sat empty for over 20 years, neglecting its potential as an asset to Centretown and Ottawa. Many fear that the complete lack of upkeep is slowly leading to ‘demolition by neglect’.

Looking past its current condition of boarded up windows, peeling paint and overgrown shrubbery, the complex is an outstanding example of architecture in Centretown -- the original 1922 building and its 1956 and 1963 additions, which harmoniously blend in with the original, communicate the site’s phased history through its built form.  An application for protection under Part IV of the Ontario Heritage Act has been filed with the City (see the Centretown Buzz of October 14, 2022).

Emily’s thesis thoroughly documents the heritage value of the complex and then works through a proposal of how it could be repurposed for the benefit of the Centretown community. Her thesis can be accessed here.

She will present a brief site and building history and her proposal at a public meeting at 6:30 p.m. on Monday, September 25, 2023, at the Jack Purcell Community Centre on Elgin Street. The meeting is sponsored by the Centretown Community Association. All are invited!