Next up on the chopping block is the 1920’s era Field house in Wilson Park. As you may or may not know, the city agreed to a land swap with the school board. In exchange for taxpayers giving 3 acres of Wilson park to the School Board to build the replacement to Benson School, we’ll inherit a vacant lot where the current 80 year old Benson sits. Guess what’s planned for that site? You guessed it, a parking lot.
A view of Wilson Park from behind the field house. Soon this view will be gone as the new school will replace parkland.
Here is a vintage photo of the field house that comes from Wayne State University and the Virtual Motor City project. The photo above dates to the late 20’s early 30’s.
There is a twin to this field house at the corner of Erie and McDougall in Wigle Park. That one is scheduled for restoration, although with the impending budget cuts, that project may end up on the backburner.
What is with this city and parking lot’s ? The mayor must have family members in the asphalt business or something. I have nothing against historic buildings but I hope the restoration plans for the Erie/McDougall field house includes re-locating it away from the corner. The way people here drive and always running through red lights because they are late for their on-the-way-to-work-coffee,sure would be nice to see them coming without finding out the hard way.
What’s wrong with just keeping the old school? I doubt it would cost any more than a tenth of that to retrofit or do whatever the problem argument is to justify building a new one. Instead, taxpayers end up overpaying for these boring, box shaped institutions tha look like prisons. Last year, taxpayers spent $10 million on building the new FW Begley. $14 million on South Windsor Elementary School. When I looked at the school board’s website, they’re also planning for this year a new John Campbell school and another in Riverside. http://www.gecdsb.on.ca/schools/newSchools/
What does the city care? It’s only taxpayers’ money. Francis is just sitting there in his Ivory tower, bleeding us dry with his $150K a year salary. Let’s just waste money on crap, instead of spending it on crime prevention and dealing with graffitti bandits and illegal dumpers.
I thought a park was supposed to be going in there to replace the one they’re losing? A parking lot? That’s just ridiculous.
Andrew, you seem to be the bearer of bad news in many of these posts lately. Although I am not surpirsed. Is there nothing positive on the horizon that would be an inprovement to our built environment. If only the city leaders could create inspring places that would give the people of Windsor something to care about!! Concrete bunkers, quansit hut bus depots, the destruction of anything with a shred of charater, all for what? Where will more parking lots and ugly construction take this city? There really is nothing new and inspiring about Windsor that I can see, Of course there are pockets of beauty, but few and far between. Are there any good news stories out there? Something Windsor could be proud of? This is certainly a great site and will serve as an invaluable reference for when there will nothing but shrines to the car and ugliness left in the city.
Fausto – I wish I had good news to deliver. Unless unchecked urban sprawl and stucco is your thing, I don’t forsee any good news anytime soon.
BBS – From what I understood there may be a small playground on the old school site, but it will be primarily used as parking for Adie Knox.
David – While in the long run, yes us taxpayers are paying for it the money for this foolishness for once it’s not the city’s fault. Blame the school board and the provincial Liberals.
Hey, so are you guys complaining to your Councilors and MPPs about this stuff? I do. At least, write e-mails to them, even if they don’t respond to your previous e-mails.. If they get enough e-mails from a large number of their constituents against these projects, they might actually take heed and do something about it. Just 1 or 2 guys complaining is probably gonna fall on deaf ears.
Another beautiful old building making way for a parking lot. Hey Windsor wake up! Don’t listen to Ken Lewenza. The local auto industry’s dying out and there’s nothing the CAW or Dummy McGuinty can do about it. In ten years GM and Ford will be owned by Toyota and Chrysler will be a fond memory. Get off your butt and build a decent transit system so all the future unemployed auto workers can go downtown to pick up their pogey. Give us more bike lanes before the price of gas hits five bucks a liter. Forget about how good we had it back in 1978 because the good old days are over. Don’t tear down any more perfectly good buildings. You’ll need somewhere to live when you lose your home to the bank.
David, you are right. I’ve spoken to councilors and have written to MPP’s and continue to do so, hoping that my input would be meaningful. Perhaps, in time, there will be a critical mass that will demand change.
My first sex happened behind that fieldhouse… she took me like a woman!!!!
Hey George you sound like fun wanna hang out sometime?
i can’t believe those graffti assholes had to put their mark on the mural on the wall no respect for anyone i’d like to catch one of these jerks and spray paint their face
That building is still there. The mural is different, but it still stands. The one at Wigle Park is still there. The roof line is quite different from this one.
I live in one of those houses on the street behind that field house. The Ministry of Education (the ones that gave approval to the Public Board to build the school) failed the environmental assessment for the new school, and the Ministry of the Environment said they had to do an even more rigorous Environmental Impact Statement (which they also failed). J.E. Benson School will probably be torn down (eventually), though they discovered CRAPLOADS of asbestos in it, so…demolition or even deconstruction will be very difficult, time-consuming, and costly as all hell. In fact, as long as it`s not disturbed, the building could be used as offices or something else… it’s best to just leave that asbestos alone if it can be helped. Now the city wants to close Adie Knox Arena (plummeting my property value, thanks a lot, shitty– er, city hall!) Windsor Water World, and all the other pools just to funnel everyone to the overpriced and over-expensive Aquatic Center. Yeah… never gonna happen. They should’ve spent the 90 million dollars building that on our somehow-worse-than-Detroit roads instead!