St. Stephen old town hall added to endangered places list

A national heritage non-profit group has added the old St. Stephen town hall to its list of most endangered places in Canada.

The National Trust for Canada hopes the unfavourable designation will call attention to the national historic site, which has stood empty for seven years.

"Sometimes we choose sites that are at the eleventh hour because it's important to make a point," executive director Natalie Bull said Friday in an interview with Information Morning Saint John.

"But our goal is always that we are trying to use the list and attention it brings to empower local groups and hold elected officials' feet to the fire in the hope that something positive comes out of it."

The 128-year-old-building has been moving toward demolition because of safety concerns.

In February, the previous town council voted unanimously to spend $100,000 to tear the building down, rather than spend the estimated $2 million to repair the structure.

Nearly 550 people have added their names to a change.org petition calling for the building to be saved, restored and repurposed.

Demolition by neglect

Bull says it's a case of demolition by neglect.

"When a building is owned by government, we should be expecting governments to show leadership in investing in preventative maintenance," she said.

"Certainly buildings we own are subject to property standards bylaws and we're expected to keep things in good repair. So we have to recognize our governments need to invest in these assets … that belong to all of us."

The St. Stephen site joins the wooden grain elevators of the Canadian prairies, and Vancouver's Chinatown on this year's endangered list.

Bull says making the list has influenced the fate of some of the sites in the past.

Fredericton's York Street Train Station was ultimately saved after falling into a desperate state of disrepair.

And in Guelph, Ont., a developer came forward to buy and restore the neglected Petrie Building, which made the National Trust's list in 2014.

"Canadians can … make a lot of noise about the importance these places play in our communities, and encourage governments at all levels to create programs, funding and incentives that help us keep them out of the landfill," Bull said.​

The St. Stephen structure was designed by Thomas Fuller, the architect behind Parliament in Ottawa and the Halifax Armoury, and has stood since the 1880s. It served as the town's post office and town hall.

The site has been empty since 2009 when municipal offices were moved out amid concerns about the safety of the structure.