A small-scale addition to a 1912 family home, the renovation of an elegant 1913 Craftsman style house, and a crane restoration are among the recipients of this year’s heritage achievement awards in North Vancouver.
Both the City and the District handed the awards out at their regular council meetings Monday night in recognition of Heritage Week Feb. 16-22. Mayor Richard Walton noted in his proclamation of Heritage Week that the theme in B.C. this year is “Main Street: At The Heart of the Community.”
Awards are presented each year in various categories, including maintenance and renovations of residential and commercial heritage structures; heritage advocacy; heritage landscape preservation enhancement; compatible new design in a heritage context and awards of merit.
West Vancouver recognizes heritage achievements at its annual community awards in the fall.
This year, city council bestowed six awards for renovation, achievement and conservation. Information from the city notes that award recipients are chosen by the Heritage Advisory Commission, and the purpose of the awards is to give recognition to those who have made a significant effort in support of heritage conservation in the city.
St. Paul’s Indian Catholic Church was recognized with an Honourary Heritage Project Achievement Award for its 2013 renovation. Information from the city notes that the restoration “significantly contributed to ensure the longevity of the site while maintaining the heritage character and value of the historic building.”
The original chapel was built in the mid-1860s. The recent restoration included lighted crosses on top of the spires and original windows, repainting the siding and trim.
New entrance steps, doors and hardware were also added, among other enhancements.
Queen Mary Community elementary received a Heritage Project Achievement Award for its restoration and reconstruction, which began in 2011 and was completed in 2014.
St. Paul’s Indian Residential School Commemorative Monument (located in the 500 block of West Keith Road at what is now the St. Thomas Aquinas School site) also received a Heritage Awareness Achievement Award. The monument stands in memory of the many children from Mission, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh reserves who were forced into the residence between 1899 and 1959, and the effect their mistreatment had on the children and their families.
Emery House at 245 East First St. received a Commercial Heritage Conservation Award. It is one of the last remaining homes in the light industrial area, according to information from the city. The home’s rehabilitation included “fish-scale shingle work, lathe-turned veranda columns and other character-defining elements of the Queen Anne Revival style.”
Jackson House at 2513 Jones Ave. was recognized with a Small Scale Heritage Award for its “modest” second-storey addition.
The restoration of the Shipyard Crane at 19-21 Wallace Mews received a Heritage Project Achievement Award.
In the district, the Community Heritage Committee singled out the Deep Cove Heritage Society with a Heritage Advocacy award for being instrumental in a variety of projects, including heritage documentation, fundraising and publishing the book Echoes Across Seymour.
A Maintenance and Renovation award went to MacKenzie House, at 494 East Windsor Rd. in recognition of both a renovation and ongoing conservation of the home.
Jennifer McCarthy and Farhad Khan, owners of Bluhouse Market & Café in Deep Cove, received an award for Maintenance and Renovations of a Heritage Register Commercial Building for their work in blending a business vision with respect for the heritage-character defining elements of the building, according to information from the district.
