HERITAGE OTTAWA CALLS ON FEDS TO MAKE A DECISION ON FUTURE HOME OF PRIME MINISTER

https://www.ctvnews.ca/ottawa/article/heritage-ottawa-calls-on-feds-to-make-a-decision-on-future-home-of-prime-minister/CTV News has reported on Heritage Ottawa's call for a decision on the future of 24 Sussex Drive as the residence of Canada's prime minister. 

The NCC completed abatement and decommissioning work at 24 Sussex Drive in 2024 to address health and safety issues and remove “obsolete mechanical, heating and electrical systems.” The NCC also conducted an “abatement of designated substances, such as asbestos," reported CTV's Josh Pringle. 

Speaking on behalf of Heritage Ottawa, president Katherine Spencer-Ross stressed the historic significance of the 24 Sussex Drive property and its viability as the P.M.'s official residence. “One could absolutely restore the building, and if the prime minister’s requirements are to have more space, an addition is a possibility or a separate building," she noted. "Everything has been torn out of the building. The shell is there, it's ready for something to be done to it, so let's make a decision and move forward."

Built in 1867, the landmark building is designated a Classified Heritage Building by the federal government. The main house includes 34 rooms, as well as an existing outbuilding and pool house with two RCMP guard houses.

A June 2021 report from the NCC said it would cost $36.6 million to restore 24 Sussex Drive to “good condition.” 

Spencer-Ross says the federal government needs to be convinced that the prime minister “needs a house” and it should be 24 Sussex Drive

.

“It’s an optics thing. I can understand a prime minister of the day saying, ‘No, I don’t want to be seen spending money.’ The problem is, over the years and over the decades, each successive prime minister has said, ‘I don’t want to be seen to be doing anything with 24 Sussex,’” Spencer-Ross said. 

“You know, with your own house, if you don’t do regular maintenance, it’s going to fall apart. The longer you leave a house vacant, or at least maintained, the more expensive it’s going to be in the end to fix it.”

To read the full article, click: Heritage Ottawa calls on feds to make a decision on future home of prime minister.  

Read more about 24 Sussex Drive here: https://heritageottawa.org/en/24-sussex-drive