The costs are heavy, the labour is intense, but the reward is worth it, says Richard Holmes.
Holmes has worked in real estate and has been restoring heritage buildings for 30 years. He knows as well as anyone in Canada that even the best laid plans for the restoration and rehabilitation of a century old downtown building can go sideways in a hurry.
It took six years for HolmesB次元官网网址� 131-year-old business, Pemberton and Son, to restore the Promis Block it owns at 1006 Government Street, from 2011 to 2017. All said and done, the Promis Block, built in 1905, is now a sleek blend of brick, contemporary downtown architecture that boasts glass walls and open staircases. Upgrades included seismic upgrading (which was the tough part), a new foundation, electrical wiring, sprinkler system and the installation of support beams.
This month it was recognized by Heritage B.C. with the award at the 2018 Heritage Awards.
As expected, Promis Block was an unruly amount of work with delays they couldnB次元官网网址檛 have imagined.
For starters, they excavated the Promis at its Langley street entrance, which was only 6-foot-6 in height, a place to stable work horses and other goods.
B次元官网网址淥ur intentions were to add some height to the main floor on the Langley side,B次元官网网址� said Holmes, a North Saanich resident. B次元官网网址淲e found the outer walls had no underpinning, simply sitting on the dirt, which was quite a surprise, so we had to undercut the walls and install new footings, which was a big job. You canB次元官网网址檛 remove the material completely so we had to go around the building progressively, exposing four feet at a time, to set new footings.B次元官网网址�
Financially, it is not as rewarding as new builds but in the long run it all comes together, Holmes said.
B次元官网网址淚 love our downtown, I donB次元官网网址檛 like to see it changed. I think itB次元官网网址檚 what makes Victoria special. I get a lot of pleasure out of seeing a heritage building glow and shine, seeing it desired by the tenants and customers.B次元官网网址�
Holmes also oversaw the recent restoration of 737 Fort Street, with its 1910 Greco-Roman front.
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