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1029 Tower Road
Location
Halifax, Nova Scotia
Why it matters
Built around 1873, this beautiful house – positioned perpendicular to the street – is a Victorian era wooden cottage built in the Georgian style complete with five-sided Scottish dormers. The cottage forms part of the Tower Road Victorian Streetscape, with its extraordinary collection of late Victorian Eclectic houses. 1029 Tower Road represents the thousands of small heritage homes throughout the country under threat from insensitive infill and densification.
Why it’s endangered
The owner of 1029 Tower Road has applied to demolish the registered structure and will be eligible to proceed in a little less than two years. Under the Nova Scotia Heritage Property Act, the owner of a registered building can demolish three years after submitting a demolition permit application – regardless of the will of the municipality. This three-year rule is a weak deterrent for developers wishing to demolish historic homes to make way for new development. Its inclusion in the Tower Road Victorian Streetscape does not confer any additional protection. The pressures and insufficient protection on 1029 Tower Road are felt by small heritage homes on large lots across the country.
