By Canadian Press

After outcry, Quebec town plans to build replica of historic house it demolished

Nov 27, 2018 | 2:46 PM

MONTREAL — After a public outcry over the demolition of a historically significant house in Chambly, Que. last week, the town has announced plans to replace it with a replica.

Interim Mayor Jean Roy insists that was the plan all along.

Roy said that when the town acquired the building in 2016, a local historical society recommended the renovation of the building but acknowledged demolition and reconstruction might be necessary.

“Because of what happened lately and the information we got that it was damaged beyond repair and that it wasn’t recoverable, then it kind of precipitated the decision,” he said in an interview Tuesday.

The house, which was built around 1820, had links to a civilian uprising against British rule. It was home to Rene Boileau, a local notary who took part in the Patriote rebellions of 1837-1838.  He organized political rallies of the Patriotes and his daughter was married to one of the leaders of the uprising.

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Historian Louise Chevrier, who belongs to a local citizens’ movement, rejected the plan for a replica. 

“To rebuild a house is like Walt Disney …. We don’t want a Disneyland,” she said in an interview. “They didn’t even leave the foundations, there’s no trace of it left.”

Dinu Bumbaru, policy director of Heritage Montreal, said choosing to build a replica is a “terrible and strictly political decision.” He said the town “was responding to an error that was made last week with another error.”

He described the demolition last Thursday as relentless. “They went with an excavator to get rid of the foundation and the archaeology — this is mean,” he said.

Bumbaru said the Quebec government was ready to help, but Chambly made a decision that was “disastrous and costly for heritage and the dignity of the town.”

Roy said that a 2017 analysis found it would have cost $1.4 million to build a copy of the house, compared with $1.8 million to restore the existing structure. He added that the cost for both options has increased since then.

He said he doesn’t know how much the demolition cost because it was done internally by the town’s blue collar workers.

Chevrier, who maintains the house could have remained standing for decades, wants the town to take more time to reflect on what it does with the now-vacant lot.

But Roy ruled out a public consultation on the plan for a replica, saying it was unnecessary. The town said the new Maison Boileau will be rebuilt according to original plans but using modern building materials.

Michel Larose, the town’s director, released reports supporting the decision to demolish the 200-year-old structure. One report said the Maison Boileau had suffered irreversible damage because it was poorly maintained.

Peter Rakobowchuk, The Canadian Press