The modernist studio and “unusual” carport of a North Vancouver artist who helped popularize the West Coast Modern architecture movement may soon be demolished.
District of North Vancouver council voted 6-1 Monday to temporarily withhold a demolition permit for the Carisbrooke area structures once belonging to photographer Selwyn Pullan.
The current owner of the property, at 233 Wooddale Rd. has applied to demolish the 1960 buildings designed by Fred Hollingsworth, and build a six-unit development that includes replicas of the studio and carport.
While architects like Hollingsworth, Ron Thom and Barry Downs helped establish the West Coast Modern movement – which sought make buildings fit in with their environment rather than dominate it – Pullan was a central figure in documenting and disseminating their work in architecture magazines and journals, popularizing design principles that are still in use today.
When he died in 2017 at the age of 95, the West Vancouver Museum dedicated and exhibition to Pullan’s work.
As a matter of district policy, any time an owner seeks to demolish a building on the municipality’s heritage register, the chief building officer is required to withhold the permit until council has had a chance to discuss potential options to save the building with the property owner. Oftentimes, that takes the form of a heritage revitalization agreement in which the heritage building is restored and given legal protection in exchange for extra density or subdivision of the property.
But the land’s current owner said the structures are too far gone, something she has already communicated clearly to district staff with documentation from professionals.
“This project is personal, as we’re relocating our family to North Van to build our home and office on a land with heritage legacy. We hired the most qualified team, a heritage consultant and an architect both registered with the Canadian Association of Heritage Professionals and have decades of experience in conservation work all over B.C. including on the North Shore. But despite their expertise, their professional opinions have been consistently questioned, misinterpreted and disregarded by staff,” Deepinder Gill told council at the July 21 meeting.
“[The district] reduces professional reports to a single vague sentence about the studio, ignoring critical safety risks flagged by the engineer, heritage consultant and the architect, raising serious concerns about transparency, bias and integrity of this process,” she said.
A professional engineer hired by Gill submitted that the studio’s support posts are 150 per cent over their load capacity, she said, adding the engineer concluded demolition of both structures was the only reasonable course of action.
North Shore Heritage president advocates to save buildings
North Shore Heritage president Jennifer Clay urged the parties to find a new “vision” for the property that retains the buildings.
“We encourage the DNV and the owner to work hard to come to a mutually beneficial agreement. It would be a shame to lose such iconic, historically significant buildings,” she said.
Coun. Lisa Muri noted how difficult it is to save heritage buildings from time and redevelopment pressures, but said it is worth the effort.
“All of these homes, especially the Hollingsworths, represent a significant achievement in architecture in our community, and we’ve worked hard over the years to try to save as many as we can. It’s a challenging, uphill battle, often,” she said. “It’s trying to keep the original structure in place and working towards some agreement that will benefit the protection of these incredible pieces of architecture and also provide a carrot for the owner and the applicant. I always think that there’s always a sober second thought on these ones.”
Mayor Mike Little said he agreed and added he saw no value in creating a replica of Pullan’s studio and carport on the property.
“It’s regrettable that it’s gotten into the condition that it’s in, but I hope there’s an opportunity to preserve it,” he said.
The motion passed 5-1. Though she did not offer any comments in the debate, Coun. Catherine Pope was the lone dissenter on withholding the demolition permit.
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