Niagara-on-the-Lake Local received the following letter about a proposal for the Parliament Oak property.
I was disappointed in the latest proposal for the Parliament Oak property since after spending a decade here I thought Benny Morotta (of Two Sisters Resorts and Solmar, owner of the Parliament Oak property) would have come to appreciate what makes Niagara-on-the-Lake unique.
New buildings have always been compatible with their surroundings in use, size, materials and scale. It’s called contextualism and it’s a philosophy that has been successfully followed in the design of new structures in the town for200 years.
Mr. Marotta is insulting our community and embarrassing himself in proposing a huge brick and stone hotel in the middle of one and a half and two storey single family houses, clad primarily with wood siding or stucco.
Town council and staff should not give this proposal any serious consideration as it reveals poor land use planning as well as proposing a building that wouldn’t be compatible anywhere in town, not just on this property.
Yours Sincerely,
Wayne Murray, B. Arch, MRAIC
Niagara-on-the-Lake
