PAGE 10, WHITBY FREE PRESS. HERITAGE SUPPLEMENT, SEPTEMBER 9, 1987 .7 J This? it Wih a," littie imagination,h The drawings and text presented here are a project which was begun in early August in an effort to stimulate a practical interest in the preservation of the 1847 Robert Perry house. On Monday,. August 24 the house was demolished (above) in order to provide additional parking for the new medical building. This material, therefore, has no· practical direct purpose other than to provoke a realization of the potential of our historie buildings. The Perry house was in as awkward a position as any building could be, yet it could have been a vital element in the future of Whitby's downtown area. With a little imagination, no building is beyond saving. THE PROBLEM The Robert Perry house was built in 1847 by the eldest son of Robert Perry, the founder of Whitby. On that basis alone it was worth saving, but it was also a fine large Georgian home with high ceilings and typically grand dimensions. At one time it stood at the centre of the block bounded by Byron, Dundas and Centre but the proper- ty had been long since subdivided so that its front view was obscured by a car dealership and a row of scrub trees. It had been divided into apar- tments several years back and the building had gained the reputation as being "run-down" and "decrepit." The property was bought in 1986, by CMD Developments, a company which develops medical buildings for groups of locà l doctors. The property, which included the bowling alley and the Perry house, was "needed" for the parking lot. This piece of property cost $600,000 which presumably was less than the cost of a parking garage to the rear of their new medical facilitv The new medical building, which has been described as architec- turally drab, is uncomplimentary to the house and left it situated in an extremely awkward position on the site. The building was of solid masonry, three or four courses thick, giving the building a weight of probably a few hundred tons. Although the building could have been moved (anything can be moved for the right price), the cost would have been prohibitive ren- dering a move uneconomic. The need was'to come up with a design which could utilize the building on its existing site in a manner which would both com- pliment its architecture and produce a viable economic entity. It was obvious at the outset that the property in front of the house (presently occupied by Grant Men- zies Motors) would have to be part of the development. The combined Doug Anderson, the publisher of the Whitby Free Press, developed a concept several years ago of retail development in an open square in front of the Perry house. But with the construction of the medical building on part of the proposed site, it became a great deal more challenging to come up with a viable proposal. The concept was to develop a closed square with a three-story properties would have to be able to generate sufficient revenue to justify the purchase of the Dundas St. frontage and pay for a parking garage behind the medical building to accommodate the parking spaces lost. The development would therefore have to have a high concentration of retail space of the most prestigious variety. facade on Dundas, and a two or three-story facade on Byron St.. surrounding an open space whose design would as much as possible mask the exterior of the adjacent medical building. Anderson needed someone who could put the concept on paper and create the detailed drawings so people could visualize the proposal. Through Durham College he found a recent graduate of interior design who filled the bil ter a brief tour building was stil of the surroundiu son gave Jeff Lé chitectural comi is from St. Mar The resulting d on the,.general ( by Anderson but was filled in by L The plan consi shaped courtyarI dual entrance att das and Byron4 Perry house..TheI would be-three. torian commerci plement.other a downtown. The fi designed to con tend the TerracE houses immedia site. The interior o tains an interest torian residential peaked roofs an spacious balcony (a la Pearson La cess to a secom space. Because i Perry house, thi plantings, bench fountain is offset yet the house is southeast entrâ provide the ma square. With the possil As conceived, has at least 65,00 commercial flot would have madE of major proporti tion of the prol house is not inclui Free] herite Free Press pul! derson has annou to sponsor a desil the preservation buildings of Whit are in or arour core. Encouraged by Lemmon, a re Durham Collegé bouse plansaabov intends to aim tl high school, coma university studen Anderson feeis THE CHALLENGE THECONCEPT SOUTHEAST VIEW FROM CENTRE OF COURTYABD SHOWING ACCESS TO THE SQUARE FROM THE CORNER OF DUNDAS AND BYRON STR EETS. THE STEPS PROVIDE ACCESS TO THE UPPER LEVEL OF SHOPS. mouise th ..0or iis