Over 500 people have signed their name to an online petition to save Saint John’s colourful and dilapidated Jelly Bean buildings from the wrecking ball.
The petition through change.org states that they “support the rescue of Saint John’s historic Jelly Bean houses on Wellington Row by a developer” and they’re seeking a thousand signatures.
A plan is in place by Saint John Non-Profit Housing to have the three historic buildings demolished, and build mixed income housing in its place. The organization made an offer to the city to buy the buildings, built circa 1860, which was accepted and closing is expected within the next month or so.
SJNPH president Lisa Keenan says the interior of the buildings are pretty run-down, with some of the mold inside running six to seven feet in length.
“We have been inside the buildings and unfortunately, given the mold, given the environmental hazards, we just don’t have the funds to convert them into what they were at one point in time,” says Keenan.
“We certainly understand there are people that are concerned about heritage and history but at the same time a lot of these people unfortunately have not seen the interior of the building and seen what time has done to the inside…we just can’t as an organization afford to fix them up to what I think people expect them to be.”
Former heritage planner for the city Jim Bezanson has signed his name to the petition.
“There are numerous vacant lots that could be used by SJNPH,” writes Bezanson. “There is no need to tear down more heritage buildings for landfill and parking lots.”
In a CHSJ News poll this week we asked for the public’s input on whether to save or demolish the Jelly Bean buildings to make way for the 40-units of mixed income housing. Here are the results:
Should the so called jellybean buildings on Wellington Row be saved or torn down to make way for mixed housing?
— CHSJ News (@chsjnews) March 21, 2017
