Public invited to view former railway roundhouse in Kentville

By Kirk Starratt

The Advertiser/NovaNewsNow.com

It was a trip down memory lane for some and, for others, it was the first time they’d seen the interior of the former railway roundhouse in Kentville. The Town of Kentville invited the public to view the building on Friday afternoon, June 8, providing a generator and lighting and the opportunity to discuss the condition of the structure with the town’s engineering and environmental consultants.

Kentville town council voted in favour of the demolition of the structure at the May session, to make way for the environmental remediation and redevelopment of the site. The tender for the demolition will soon close.

Coun. Mark Pearl was in attendance. His grandfather, father and uncle all worked on the railway.

Pearl himself had a summer job with the railway in his youth. He said councillors have been through the building more than once and they’ve been debating what to do with the roundhouse for over a year. There was input from both sides and they heard from their engineering consultants. “This is not a knee-jerk reaction by council,” he said. “Once we were informed of all the issues, we made a rational decision.”

Disappointed

Pearl said council is disappointed that community members from outside Kentville are saying that council rushed their decision. Council looked at saving some of the architecture such as doors and windows but found little that could be salvaged because of the state of dilapidation. He said that, unfortunately, the cost to town taxpayers would be problematic if they were to do anything to save the grand old building. “I’m sure anything can be repaired or restored but at what cost?” he said.

Kings Historical Society President Maynard Stevens said council should give those concerned with saving the roundhouse six months to explore funding avenues before tearing it down. He said it would be sad to see it demolished because of the historical significance. “It can never be replaced,” he said. “That history is gone with the building. It’s disappointing to see it’s scheduled for demolition.”

Peter Bishop of Centreville said, including himself, four generations of his family worked for the railway in Kentville. It was Bishop’s summer job in his youth. He said the building could be saved but it’s a matter of how badly people want to preserve it.

Bishop said the town is only considering tax dollars and it’s too easy to turn around, sell the property and have a senior’s complex developed.

Needs work “I believe once you tear something down, you don’t get it back,” Bishop said. “To me, looking at the building, it needs work but what doesn’t take money these days?”

Transportation historian Dan Conlin, who works for the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic, a member of the Roundhouse Action Group (RAG), said one third of Kentville’s workforce was once employed by the railway. He said the roundhouse is important on a provincial level because it’s the last one remaining in Nova Scotia.

He’s been keeping an eye on the structure for three decades and has been photographing it for several years. Last year, he made a presentation in Kentville about adaptive uses for the roundhouse.

Conlin said the Dominion Atlantic Railway virtually created cultural tourism and the roundhouse is where the locomotives were housed. “It should be of great importance to the town and the entire province of Nova Scotia,” he said.