Heritage on the agenda at London city hall

The future of London’s past will be discussed at city hall today.

The planning and environment committee will review a request to demolish a heritage property and a letter resisting heritage status for another building.

The Lambeth Health Organization is looking for approval to tear down the former M.B. McEachren elementary school at 4402 Colonel Talbot Road in order to build a medical centre.

The school was built in 1925 but declared surplus by the Thames Valley Board in 2010.

City staff are recommending against the request. Staff say no amount of “commemoration or interpretation” can replicate the heritage of the building. The report calls for the 1925 portion of the school, the original Lambeth Continuation School, be designated under the Ontario Heritage Act.

At the same meeting, Emco Corp. is pushing back against an effort to designate their head office at 1108 Dundas Street as a heritage property.

In a letter sent to the planning and environment committee, Siskinds, the law firm argues the designation would cause “significant harm” to their client. They say numerous renovations over the years have altered the original design of the building.

“We can advise that there are no identifying features left of the original building which can be confirmed by checking the city’s records,” the letter states.

London’s advisory committee on heritage (LACH) recommended the heritage designation by Emco says the group hasn’t provided any information to support the recommendation.

Emco has plans to build a new office at 2150 Oxford Street East, near Veterans Memorial Parkway. Their future plans for their current office are unknown.

Emco is a wholesale distributor of plumbing, HVAC, industrial and waterworks products in Canada.

The planning and environment committee meeting starts at 4 p.m. on Monday.