St. Catharines Downtown Association

 

It's a tale of two cities — or at least, one city and one town — and how quickly their main commercial streets can rise from the ashes of devastating fires.

The first fire on July 26 ripped through 48-50 St. Paul St. and damaged neighbouring buildings, displacing three businesses and leaving 10 people living in apartments above them temporarily homeless.

More than four months after the suspected arson, signs of the costly fire are plainly visible. Three side-by-side buildings remain shuttered at the gateway to the main downtown retail street in St. Catharines.

The city hasn't yet received rebuilding plans from the buildings' owners.

A second fire on Oct. 27 wiped out two historic buildings on Niagara-on-the-Lake's main shopping street, causing $5 million damage and displacing several businesses and four tenants.

It took about a week for the charred remains and rubble to be removed, leaving nothing but a tidy hole at the foot of Queen Street.

Owners of the two properties have submitted plans to rebuild to the municipality.

The difference? Partially it comes down to the economic vitality of each downtown core, observers say.

The rebuilding process is largely driven by the property owners, Niagara-on-the-Lake planning director Stephen Bedford said.

"These guys want to build as quickly as they can," he said.

"The whole energy around the fact that these things are high-value properties is creating momentum."

St. Catharines, where downtown merchants are struggling against tough economic conditions, doesn't yet have the same momentum.

The two shopping streets are operating in "different worlds," said St. Catharines Coun. Mark Elliott, who owns a homeware and gift store on St. Paul Street and represents St. Patrick's ward.

"It's very expensive land in Niagara-on-the-Lake. Certainly there's money to be made in having a building sit upon it as opposed to it sitting vacant," he said.

"Currently, in downtown St. Catharines you don't have that rush to fill the space or a pending need to fill that space at the very moment."

Bruno Ariganello, owner of the property at 48-50 St. Paul St., couldn't be reached for comment Wednesday.

But in August, he told The Standard he had no immediate plans to rebuild after the eventual demolition of his building.

With so many vacant buildings downtown, it makes little economic sense to rebuild at present, he said.

However, the situation may change if Brock University's plans forge ahead as scheduled for a downtown school of fine and performing arts.

The city is working with the owners of the properties to ensure all orders issued by its building department are met, St. Catharines Mayor Brian McMullan said.

However, any decisions about rebuilding are ultimately up to property owners.

"If the decision is made by the owner that the property is not salvageable, then they certainly cannot in my opinion leave the building in that condition. One way or another it needs to be addressed," McMullan said.

The St. Catharines Downtown Association is keen to see the eyesore fixed, general manager Tisha Polocko said.

"It doesn't send a great message for our downtown. Obviously, we would like to see someone turn around and rebuild instead of having that vacant look," she said.

Elliott suggested future development in the lower-level parking lot behind St. Paul Street could lead to the revitalization of the properties hit by fire.

"If the buildings do have to come down, it provides an opportunity for something else to take its place," he said. 

Please see story in The St. Catharines Standard by P. Downs at:  

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2203593