Federal Government Okays Demolition of Nationally Significant Heritage Railway Station in Biggar, SK.
OTTAWA, March 20, 2018 /CNW/ - The National Trust for Canada is dismayed to learn that the federal government has granted approval to demolish a Heritage Railway Station and National Historic Site.
The Minister of the Environment and Climate Change recommended a federal Order in Council (PC Number: 2018-0208) authorizing the demolition of the Canadian National Railway Station in Biggar, Saskatchewan – a building that the federal government designated as a National Historic Site in 1976 and a Heritage Railway Station in 1995.
"The imminent loss of this nationally significant structure underscores the urgent need for federal leadership and funding for Canada's historic places," said Natalie Bull, Executive Director of the National Trust.
This federal approval for demolition comes only weeks after Federal Budget 2018 failed to renew the National Cost-Sharing Program for Heritage Places, the only dedicated source of federal funding for historic places not owned by the federal government. Limited to a few hundred National Historic Sites, federally designated lighthouses and railway stations, it is typically underfunded and oversubscribed, and now its future is uncertain.
March 21, the Liberal Government is expected to vote down Bill C-323 – an Act proposing federal financial measures for the rehabilitation of historic properties. Tax measures like the ones proposed in Bill C-323 have a forty-year track record in the United States and are a proven way to attract private investment to historic places like the CN Station in Biggar, giving them vibrant new uses, creating skilled jobs, and generating less carbon and waste than new construction.
"These are substantial setbacks for heritage in Canada – and they come during a period of unprecedented debate on Parliament Hill about the challenges facing historic places," says Bull. Federal financial measures for heritage appear prominently among the recommendations in a House of Commons Environment and Sustainable Development Committee report tabled in Parliament in December. Preserving Canada's Heritage: The Foundation for Tomorrow is now awaiting a response from the Minister of the Environment and Climate Change.
About the National Trust for Canada
The National Trust for Canada leads and inspires action for places that matter. Our sites, projects and programs engage Canadians, enhance local identity and bring heritage to life. Visit us at www.nationaltrustcanada.ca.
SOURCE National Trust for Canada
Media Contact, Katrina Guerin, Manager of Communications, 613-237-1066 ext. 229, [email protected]
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