A growing number of St. John’s residents are speaking out in hopes of preventing a cherished part of the Battery neighbourhood from being lost forever.
Well-known actor and author Andy Jones has joined with other concerned citizens in writing an open letter to the City of St. John’s and the provincial government seeking a solution to protect the property known as Limeville.
The property was sold following the death of its former owner, and a developer is proposing to tear down the existing house and develop the surrounding land into three executive townhomes.
Jones read the letter in a post shared on Facebook, urging the municipal and provincial governments to consider the concerns of area residents.
Part of the Limeville property (VOCM News)
“Once again, we have that terrible, gut feeling that something special and beautiful and valuable to us, is going to be trampled on, and there’s nothing we can do about it.”
The letter urges lawmakers to consider ensuring that new builds take into account “the beauty and ingenuity of our traditional architecture and its surroundings.”
“Newfoundlanders and Labradorians traditionally built their houses with an incredible sense of beauty, scale and aesthetics. Let’s prepare new laws to continue this tradition, and strike down regulations in our home land that cater to a very, very small group of individuals who don’t care for, or represent the interests and passions of the vast majority of us. Those of us who call each other ‘neighbours.’”
A protest planned for last weekend to protect Limeville had to be postponed due to weather. It’s been rescheduled for November 8th.
