A zebra’s head on a lion’s body

Ottawa really should be a “signature” city, where people come to gawk at the architecture, statues, etc. The newer Ottawa has made so many blunders it’s almost laughable. Sticking a zebra’s head on a lion’s body doesn’t work.

The most disgusting thing about this whole Château Laurier addition debacle is that we are reaching a point where people are exhausted and fed up. The “Let’s just get on with it and build it no matter what” mentality will unfortunately take over, which will mean that we’ll be stuck with an architectural faux pas for many future decades.

Some think that modernizing a French Gothic châteauesque style of architecture is no big deal, but the truth is that it should never be done. If the shoe were on the other foot and an architect proposed adding a Gothic addition to a downtown nondescript highrise condo, many would probably scratch their heads.

There is a saying that Ottawa will be nice — once it’s finished. Ottawa is a work in progress, but adding an ugly modern addition to a worldclass architectural icon is turning it into a cheaplooking, styleless city. Frank Lloyd Wright said that, “A doctor can bury his mistakes but an architect can only advise his clients to plant vines.”

The barbarians are at the gates; please don’t let them in. Or is it now too late? Douglas Cornish, Ottawa