As of Thursday morning, a petition to save the Robertson headframe from impending destruction had 103 signatures online and 289 on paper. The petitioner’s goal, however, is looking increasingly unattainable with every passing day.
Yesterday, the City approved a development permit for the demolition of the headframe, moving the process another tactile step forward. Opponents of the structure’s destruction now have until Sept. 8 to file an appeal with city hall’s development office.
The company still has to meet a long list of conditions before they can proceed, most of which pertain to removing materials such as mercury, asbestos and freon, and ensuring debris and hazardous materials are disposed of at the landfill in the appropriate manner.
Once the 14-day appeal period is over, a building inspector can issue a building permit (it may sound peculiar that you need a building permit to tear something down/blow something up, but that’s the process). The building inspector is allowed to put conditions on the permit, but the permit itself can’t be appealed like a development permit can. So essentially folks, you have 13 days.
