[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="600" caption="Photo: Postcard of the Butler Motor Hotel, 1960s; Photographed and published by W. Schermer, Montreal, Quebec."][/caption]   The following article by Spacing Ottawa contributor Mike Steinhauer is cross-posted from VanierNow.ca, a new blog about the one square-mile neighbourhood called Vanier. By the mid 1950s Canada boasted over 3000 motels. The family-run establishments, located on the outskirts of cities along the main entry points, offered free parking and homemade meals at an adjacent restaurant. Ottawa, being a tourist town, had its fair share with almost all located along the Prescott Highway, Montreal Road and the Pembroke Highway. Many of the city’s motels have disappeared but the ghost of Vanier’s Butler Motor Hotel, complete with a stylish 1960s façade, is still visible today.

The architect’s design slowly emerges as the curved concrete walls of the Wabano Centre are being poured. With the undulating forms of its façade and the massive dome that will top the new expansion, the centre is bound to become an iconic feature on Montreal Road. The building, designed by Douglas Cardinal, Ottawa’s preeminent architect, highlights the curvilinear style also evident in the Canadian Museum of Civilization in Gatineau. A couple blocks south, just off McArthur Avenue and the Vanier Parkway, a much larger pit is visible. Bona Building & Management Co. is constructing a large office tower on one of the few remaining lots that housed a warehouse built in the 1940’s. Further north, also along the parkway, a second Claridge tower is growing tall. In addition to the two 20 storey buildings, this 10-acre site contains 54 townhouses and six three-storey condo buildings. A retirement home along Landry Street will complete the project. Today, few remember the controversy that erupted when the development was first proposed or the fact that this was once a steel fabrication plant.

[flickrslideshow acct_name="66414821@N06" id="72157627435525540"] No other Ottawa building, before or after its demolition, has generated as much discussion as the Daly Building. Its history is contentious and some might argue that its survival was doomed from the start. Located in the downtown core, where the local city meets a federal one, the building was hailed as an architectural masterpiece by some and described as the city’s ugly duckling by others. 2011 marks the 20th anniversary of its demolition — therefore it is fitting to once again look at the history of this famous structure and revisit some of the debate. An extensive slide show, depicting the site between 1870 and 2011, accompanies this piece. (Editor's note: click here for the non-Flash view.)

[flickrslideshow acct_name="58115594@N04" id="72157626262492153"] A few months back, I came across a beautiful photograph from the collection of the Bytown Museum. At first, I wasn’t able to identify the city I was looking at. I then spotted Chaudière Falls and came to recognize the beautiful stone and wrought iron fence that surrounds Parliament Hill. What threw me off were the domes in the foreground. “Domes? There are no domes in Ottawa,” I thought to myself. How wrong I was. The most obvious one is located right on Parliament Hill. The Library of Parliament is perhaps the most iconic building in the national capital region. In fact, the Reading Room, located under the dome of the library, has been referred to by some as one of the “most beautiful rooms” in Canada. The original design for the Library of Parliament contemplated the construction of a groined roof made out of stone and hollow bricks. However, it was feared that due to the large span and the great weight of the materials, together with the height of the lantern, any imperfection in the work could have serious consequences. Even a dome-shaped ceiling and lantern made out of wood was being considered. Given its great height over the floor, so it was argued, the wooden dome would be ‘out of reach of fire’.

[flickrslideshow acct_name="58115594@N04" id="72157625788601334"] __________________ The Bytown Museum explores the stories of an evolving city and its residents from its early days as Bytown to present day Ottawa. "Backspacing" is a new monthly feature produced by Museum director Mike Steinhauer and Museum development director Francesco Corsaro. Ottawa’s downtown isn’t necessarily known for its grand apartment buildings. In fact, many of the structures originate from the 1960’s and 1970’s and often have a less than desirable effect on the city’s landscape. Dotted throughout the central core, however, one finds several apartment buildings that could be described as grand: The Shefford (300 Cooper Street), Windsor Arms (150 Argyle Road) and The Strathcona (404 Laurier Avenue East). The names of the earlier residents of these buildings would often appear in the Social and Personal Activities section – the precursor to the Ottawa Citizen’s Around Town. The Shefford, built in 1912 to create apartments for the growing middle class, quickly became a respectable address and boasted spacious rooms, large windows, oak floors, a beautiful marble staircase and ‘continuous attendant elevator service’.