Appendix ‘A’: Proposed Heritage Designation By -Law

Statement of Significance

Walker Power Building

325 Devonshire Road

Description of Property

The Walker Power Building located at 325 Devonshire Road, at the southwest corner of Riverside Drive East and Devonshire Road, was constructed in c.1911-1913. The property consists of a building with a reinforced concrete structure and original tower at the southwest corner of the building, as well as a railroad turntable feature at the northwest corner of the building. The Walker Power Building is an excellent remnant of early industrial architecture in the former Town of Walkerville.

Statement of Cultural Heritage Value or Interest

Design or Physical Value:

The building is an early local example of reinforced concrete construction in the area. Constructed primarily of concrete, the building is clad with brick infill spandrel panels within bays beneath the tripartite glazing system. The limestone cladding of the concrete structural frame in the recent 2019 works retains similar historical forms and proportions. The reinforced concrete construction afforded the building an extensive use of windows which provides natural lighting. The windows consist of a tripartite glazing system (Originally, the eastern portion of the building had six over six double hung sash windows in sets of three. The western portion of the building had a similar tripartite sash, but with each third composed of 16 to 20 fixed panes, with the exception of the center panels. The center panels consists of a center pivot six panel casement windows. The 2019 redevelopment includes a prefinished aluminum tripartite glazing system on the majority of upper floors, thus replicating the appearance of the c.1911 glazing.) The Walker Power Building has an asymmetrical massing with three bays on east end and six on the west end, with recessed bay with tower on the south side of the building, and another five storey tower on the southwest corner of the building with an additional unenclosed “sixth” storey. It enjoys an otherwise generally uniform rhythm of bays on all sides (other than the new entrance on the Riverfront side).

A railroad turntable feature is located on the northwest end of the building footprint (Original built heritage and archaeological feature.)

Historical or Associative Value:

The Walker Power Building is associated with the early manufacturing base of Walkerville, from the Walkerville Light and Power Company, to the Agnew Electrical Welding Machinery Company, as well as many other industrial businesses including pioneering Canadian branches of industries from the United States. In early decades, the Walker Power Building thrived, being ideally situated adjacent to the Grand Trunk Railway