Feds closer to selecting vision for ex-embassy

By Spencer Van Dyk

The federal government is inching closer to a decision on what to do with the former U.S. Embassy at 100 Wellington St.

More than two months after Public Services and Procurement Canada released an EKOS Research survey of Canadians’ opinions about potential uses for the building, assistant deputy minister Rob Wright said the department is on track to make a decision this year — though he can’t yet reveal what that decision will be.

He said the department expects to announce its decision in 2017 — during the country’s 150th anniversary year — and those involved in the project are “moving along as anticipated.”

The six proposed uses outlined in the report were:

A Canada House, intended to provide “a taste of the country’s diversity and achievements and showcasing the best of the provinces and territories from coast to coast to coast.”

An information centre to “provide information and orientation services for visitors,” with the help of tourism organizations.

A gallery, which Wright said would likely be a national portrait gallery and house the Library and Archives Canada collection.

An Indigenous cultural centre, with “a use to be determined in partnership with Indigenous Peoples to showcase culture, achievements, and the prominent role of Indigenous people in the history and future of Canada.”

An interpretive centre for Parliament, which would provide visitors with information about the works and history of Parliament, and a “space to engage visitors.”

A museum, the specific focus of which was not laid out in the report.

In a survey of thousands of Canadians, the three choices that emerged as frontrunners were the Canada House, an Indigenous cultural centre, and a national portrait gallery — the latter idea being the original intended plan for the former American embassy building

The building — designated a federal heritage building in 1985 — has been vacant since 1998. Former prime minister Jean Chrétien wanted it to be used as a national portrait gallery, and his government began renovations for that purpose.

But the gallery project was abandoned soon after former prime minister Stephen Harper took office in 2006.

A Beaux-Arts structure by American architect Cass Gilbert, who also designed the iconic U.S. Supreme Court building in Washington, D.C., 100 Wellington was completed in 1932 and is located directly across the street from the Parliament Buildings.

Wright said before a decision is made by the government about a use for the building, his department felt it was important to survey Canadians. More than 7,000 people participated, he added.

“All interests are to proceed as quickly as possible,” he said. “The thing we’re focused on is getting it right.”

Wright said that after the EKOS Research report was made public Dec. 22, the final decision fell to Public Services and Procurement.

Once the department announces its plan for building sometime this year, “the next step would be to work with a partner programming department to develop a program, which would then inform a real budget and schedule,” he said. The programming department would depend on the chosen use.

Wright said the preferred proposal, based on a ranking system by respondents to the survey, was for a Canada House, but added that the Canada House and the Indigenous Cultural Centre are both “highly conceptual,” with little established programming envisioned.

As for the portrait gallery, although it would be a massive job to curate, the artwork is already in the possession of Library and Archives Canada. Madeleine Trudeau, a curator with the exhibitions program, said the collection is the third oldest in the world — started in the 1870s — and is one of the “most fabulous” assemblages of portraiture she’s ever seen, including “items that are exceptionally rare and precious.”

One that stands out for Trudeau is what she called the “rarest and most precious” in the collection, the only portrait ever painted of a living Beothuk Indian, that of Demasduit, created in the 19th century by artist Lady Martha Hamilton.

Trudeau said the national portrait collection can be visited by anyone, but it is currently housed in a preservation centre in Gatineau, so it is typically viewed by researchers and experts, except when items are on temporary display in an exhibition.

Architect Barry Padolsky said the government is in a good position to succeed in making 100 Wellington a tourist landmark, because the building has been very well maintained. Architecturally, he said, it’s “essentially been put into cryogenesis.”

Padolsky has worked on the renovations for the Byward Market building and the Canadian Museum of Nature. He said he believes Public Services and Procurement will choose a use that doesn’t involve “dramatic interventions to the interior.”

He added: “I think the only egregious thing is how long it’s taken for a project to finally be completed on this building.”