'It's going to look like garbage': Stouffville vents about Main Street reno
Owner had to fix falling brick. 'It’s a ticking time bomb'

YorkRegion.com
Oct. 31, 2017
Simon Martin

There is no busier place Saturday morning on Stouffville Main Street than the Fickle Pickle as locals pop in for breakfast. But it is the storefront directly to the east of the Fickle at 6306 Main Street that is garnering all the attention lately.

Owner Rotina Renovations recently covered the brick façade of the building with stucco as it proceeded with its plans to renovate the building that recently housed Curves.

That move has drawn the ire of many in town as the building is directly across from 19th on the park and is historically significant to the town.

“You don’t expect a developer to come into an early 1900s building and put stucco on a historic front,” local resident Sandra Nagel said. “It’s going to look like garbage.”

She wasn’t the only one to voice her displeasure on the matter. Local resident Arnold Neufeldt-Fast called what was happening on Main Street a major cultural-heritage faux pas. “It’s the most architecturally significant location in Stouffville. Covering up those bricks is disastrous for our town’s attempt to rejuvenate the downtown,” he said.

The owner of the property, Robert Farsico, said he had to do something with the building because the bricks were disintegrating. Farsico’s insurance company said they would remove the insurance if he didn’t do something about the falling brick. “I can’t operate without insurance. People don’t see the other side of the story,” he said. “Do you think I want to put $60,000 of stucco up?”

Farsico said he plans to turn the property into four units and will make it look as Victorian as possible. He said he looked into replacing the brick but said the whole wall would need to come down.

The greater issue Farsico said is that many buildings on Main Street are falling apart. Residents should be happy that he is investing in improving the building. “Come on. Look at this place. It’s a ticking time bomb,” he said.

Ward 5 Councillor Iain Lovatt said it’s a complicated situation. “The debate is around personal preference,” he said. “People haven’t given the build a chance, in fairness."

The owners, he said, are putting money into a structure that is falling apart, but he understands people’s connection to the brick façade. “I, personally, would lean towards a heritage look.” 

While the building is not a designated heritage building, it is on the town’s heritage inventory, receiving a perfect score for design, materials and expression. Bob Curgenven, chair of the town’s heritage advisory committee, said the building was a hotel in the late 19th century and was also home to the general store run by Abraham Stouffer’s grandson.

The town’s chief building official has placed an order on the property for exceeding the scope of the issued building permit, which has little to do with the stucco. The town said it is working with the owner to bring the property back in conformity with all applicable standards.

The heritage advisory committee did not know changes were happening to the building. The town said they would have been notified if it fell under site plan control.