We are a local community group
SOS Stratford began when neighbours in the Queen/Trow/Ontario Street area learned that a huge condominium complex had been planned for an entire city block facing onto Ontario Street. Homeowners were surprised; they had been told this property would be developed as townhouses appropriate for this mixed-use neighbourhood. The changed plan required the developer to petition the City of Stratford to rezone the area to allow buildings of four to six stories, a redesignation that conflicts with Stratford’s Official City Plan.
As our group began to form, we started to see that the problem was not just restricted to our neighbourhood; if destructive rezoning can be permitted for a designated heritage corridor on an important entranceway to the Stratford Festival, other neighbourhoods will be vulnerable to the domino effect of such a disastrous decision. We must work together to preserve heritage areas in Stratford, not just for their cultural and historic value to our city, but also because many of us depend on the resulting tourism for our livelihoods.
Questions? E-mail us.
Use the Google map below to explore our neighbourhood.
Start at the corner of Queen and Ontario Streets. You’ll see the old Bamboo Chinese restaurant, which has been left to decay. Although it looks unsaveable, its walls are solid brick, and it could be beautiful again. This house could be duplexed for family residences, providing an appropriate entranceway to the Festival Theatre, in contrast to the huge cookie-cutter condominium complex that has been proposed.
Proceed down Ontario Street to see the other buildings between Queen and Trow, and then watch architect Robert Ritz’s presentation on how this area could be redeveloped, preserving our history and culture, providing housing for families, and creating jobs for local workers.