Landmark building's façade restored in record time

As reported in the Examiner two weeks ago, barricades were put in place by the Westmount Public Works Department in front of 4943 Sherbrooke St. The building, at the corner of Claremont Avenue, is familiar to many for its Starbucks coffee outlet at street level.

Owner Meera Khanna said she contacted the City of Westmount the same day she learned of the problem.

Khanna said everything was done in less than 10 days and that the City of Westmount helped to facilitate the repair work. "They were very cooperative at City Hall," she said. "They were really super-efficient. They were right on top of it."

She singled out Joanne Poirier of Westmount's Urban Planning Department as being especially helpful.

"We took care of the problem right away," she added. "Buildings that are heritage have to be taken care of … We started working on it and getting the building structurally inspected almost immediately and within a week it had its permits. We were on it right away.

"It's totally restored to its original and it's a heritage property. It's a really popular site for all the locals to come. I see it full of children at 3:30 p.m., four o'clock. All of the private school kids here having their lattés. So it's a real nice place to meet. The terrace is outside and it didn't take very long to do it."

Opération Patrimoine Architectural de Montréal, an annual architectural preservation contest which is held to recognize property owners' efforts to maintain their property, awarded the building's owner a citation in 2005 for carefully restoring the lower part of the façade.