New plans to expand the elegant Fairmont Chateau Laurier have met a flurry of public criticism following a reveal of the new designs.
Larco Investments Ltd. proposed building a new modern glass-and-steel addition to the existing, classically-styled hotel.
This would include 200 suites for long-term stays, a new ballroom and courtyard, and replacing the five-storey parking lot with underground parking.
But the proposed addition has produced an outcry of public dissent, with many critics arguing the new design does not complement the current limestone, turrets and masonry of the French-style chateau.
The designs have parodied in memes and compared to prisons and storage containers on social media.
Many local politicians have also shared their opinions about the proposal.
Mayor Jim Watson tweeted his advice that the hotel should go “back to the drawing board” shortly after the plans were released on Wednesday.
Rideau-Vanier Coun. Mathieu Fleury is facing some criticism for being quoted in the initial release supporting the proposal.
Fleury has now clarified on Twitter that he is excited about the parking garage demolition, but thinks that the design of the expansion needs re-thinking.
The Toronto-based group behind the designs, architectsAlliance, is defending the proposal by saying that they did not want to merely replicate the hotel’s original design.
The driving force behind the construction of the Chateau Laurier, which was completed in 1912, was Charles Melville Hays, the American general manager of the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway of Canada. He wanted to build deluxe hotels and railway stations while extending a railway to the West Coast.
The Fairmont Chateau Laurier cost $2 million to build. However, Hays did not see his vision come to life for the grand opening, as he died while returning from Britain aboard the ill-fated Titanic. Any design would need approval from the National Capital Commission and the City of Ottawa before the project can begin. If everything goes according to plan, the project would start in 2017 and be completed by 2020.
The public is invited to participate in a consultation about the additions.