Demolition of Coleman Castle possible

It appears there is not much the City of Belleville can do to save a historic building from the wrecking ball.

The municipality has approved a demolition permit for the 151 year old building known as Coleman Castle, located on North Front Street.

Most recently it housed a funeral home run by Rushnell Funeral Homes.

Rushnell’s parent company, Quinte Funeral Centres Limited remains the registered owner of the building.

Mayor Neil Ellis met with city staff Wednesday afternoon and says he was told the building was never designated under the heritage act nor added to the city’s heritage registry.

“They’re looking at, to build an apartment house with about 200 apartments in it. Having said that, it would be nice if they could incorporate the building in. I’ve asked the owner that and they said the architects that they dealt with and that said it wasn’t feasible.”

While it looks fine from the outside, Ellis says the inside is another matter.

“It’s sad to see this happen but I talked to the owner, it’s not feasible to put any money into the building. Since it’s been closed, it’s been gutted with copper and the pipes have been all stolen. And there’s other issues with it and he wants to move forward with the new project.”

Ellis says they do not know when the building might be demolished.

He expects plans for the new development to come before city council in the near future.

Ellis adds there are not many buildings being added to the heritage registry or receiving heritage designation these days, meaning more of the city’s history could be torn down.

“I think we have to get out and look and see what buildings aren’t on the registry, which will be done through the Historical Society. And look and see if there’s any other buildings that, you know, should be put on the registry.”

Most of Belleville’s heritage designations occurred in the 1980s and ’90s, often in association with provincial grant funding or other incentives.

Belleville Chief Building Official Brett Forestell tells Quinte News the city’s designation program has traditionally been based upon owner-initiated requests, and owner cooperation.
Recent initiatives of the heritage committee have included contacting owners of significant properties already listed on the city’s heritage register (but not designated) to gauge their interest in heritage designation. Unfortunately this process has not generated any interest.He says the Coleman Castle was not included in an early 2000s listing project which identified potential properties that could be designated, as it focused on the downtown area and Foster Ward to the south.

With many of Belleville’s oldest buildings aging, even some already designated as heritage may be torn down, though Mayor Ellis says there is a process that must be followed before a heritage designation can be removed.

That recently occurred for 397 Front Street in downtown Belleville.

Demolition of the building, built in 1858 by Belleville’s George Eyre Henderson, began last week after the city removed the heritage designation.

That building had been vacant and fenced off to protect the public from falling debris for several years with its owner, Mark Rashotte, saying long ago that it would cost far too much to make the building safe.