Niagara-on-the-Lake’s municipal heritage committee approved the demolition of the Royal George Theatre, with the tear-down of the 110-year-old theatre expected to start late next month.

The approval covers the theatre and an adjacent building used for the Shaw Festival’s costume and wardrobe operations. Tim Jennings, executive director of the Shaw Festival, said they have already started the tear-down process.

“We have applied for the demolition permit and would expect timing for the demolition of the theatre box office to start in late February or March,” he said.

The committee approved the demolition on the condition that a site plan agreement is in place with the town, that heritage conditions form part of the agreement and that a final conservation and commemoration plan is submitted.

During the meeting last Wednesday, members discussed how to commemorate the existing Royal George Theatre within the new theatre.

Under the conservation and commemoration plan, the design would include a historical timeline and space on the ground and second floors to display archived items from the original theatre, said Kasper Koblauch, an urban planner with ERA Architects who presented to the committee.

He also said the plan includes “a number of new commemorative plaques” across the site, including revised plaque text.

Koblauch said the plan was initially developed in response to the committee’s approval in September of the demolition of 178-188 Victoria St., another building the Shaw Festival operates on its property.

Sumra Zia, the town’s heritage planner, said the conservation and commemoration plan presented at the meeting was the final version.

“The committee will not see it again unless there are substantial changes,” she said.

The committee also discussed preserving documents and other archival material. Jennings said the University of Guelph would maintain the digital archives, while some materials would be housed at the Niagara-on-the-Lake Museum.

“There’s a specific, ongoing perpetual archive maintained by the University of Guelph about the Shaw Festival,” he said. “So, all the digital materials would live there.”

“We wanted to offer the (NOTL) Museum anything that they would like.”

Coun. Gary Burroughs, who sits on the municipal heritage committee, questioned why the town issued two demolition permits — one for the wardrobe building and one for the theatre — rather than a single permit.

“Until we have a final site plan, it’s hard to do the demolition for either,” he said.

At least one member of the public has raised concerns about the plan.

Nicholas Colaneri, a Niagara-on-the-Lake developer and outspoken opponent of the Shaw Festival’s new design, sent a letter outlining his concerns to the municipal heritage committee. The topic of the letter was raised during the meeting.

Colaneri told The Lake Report he had previously raised issues related to Planning Act violations, while this letter focused on the Ontario Heritage Act. He said he could pursue further action if the demolition proceeds.

“I raised these issues multiple times through public submissions and written evidence,” he said. “Since they were ignored and not addressed, I am pursuing further review through the legal processes available to me.”

In his letter, Colaneri cited several concerns with the approval process, including that approving different sections of the building at different times “(undermined) the integrity of heritage conservation district review.” He also argued that “commemoration is not conservation.”

“Proposed ‘ghost facades,’ plaques, or interpretive elements do not conserve heritage resources,” he wrote. “The act speaks to conservation, protection, and preservation, not symbolic replacement. Once demolished, the heritage resource, and its contribution to the district, is permanently lost.”

Colaneri also said the demolition served no conservation purpose and warned it could set a negative precedent if it proceeds.

During the meeting, Koblauchsaid Colaneri’s letter raised interesting points but ultimately recommended proceeding with the demolition.

The next step on the road to the Royal George’s demolition is for NOTL council to approve the committee’s recommendation during its council meeting on Jan. 27.