A 16-month-old battle over the character of Albert Street has ended as city councillors placed a tentative stamp of approval on a plan to redevelop the St. Charles Hotel.
On Tuesday morning, council’s property and development committee voted unanimously to allow hotel developer Ken Zaifman to pursue a $10 million renovation plan that will see the demolition of the adjacent Albert Street Business Block, a retail strip that contains portions of a 131-year-old dwelling.
Under the terms of the agreement, Zaifman must complete at least 50 per cent of the renovations to the St. Charles before he will be allowed to knock down the business block, which he represents but does not own.
Earlier plans put forward by Zaifman were opposed by heritage groups, mainly because they called for a curb cut on pedestrian-friendly Albert Street.
But the new design, which calls for the hotel’s restaurant to be extended north along Albert Street, won over Heritage Winnipeg and Parks Canada, which had been opposed to the project as recently as one month ago.
To both organizations, preserving the Albert streetscape was more important than maintaining what remains of the heritage dwelling inside the business block.
Zaifman said he was happy a compromise had been reached but must now focus on creating a detailed design and securing financing for the his hotel venture.
The Albert Street Business Block demolition and St. Charles Hotel redevelopment plan must still be approved by Mayor Sam Katz’s cabinet and city council as a whole.
bartley.kives@freepress.mb.ca
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