Historic Magee House in Hintonburg Suffers Partial Collapse

Emergency personnel deal with a partial collapse of the Magee House on Wellington Street West in Hintonburg. Photo: Wayne Cuddington / Postmedia

Tuesday, July 24, 2018

OTTAWA CITIZEN, By Kieran Delamont

A wall on a historic building in Hintonburg partially collapsed just after 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday night.

Ottawa Fire Services is continuing to investigate after the west-facing wall of a building known as the Magee House, a property that’s more than 140 years old, collapsed.

Nobody was injured in the collapse and OFS had not determined its cause. OFS said the rest of the property appeared to still be stable, but that there were no estimates for the cost of the damage.

The Magee House was one of the first buildings built in what would later become Hintonburg. First built in 1874, the building was designated as a heritage building in 1996.

Over the years it has served many purposes, including being home to several hardware stores, a used car dealership and a men’s wear shop. More recently, though, the owner of the building had flirted with the idea of turning the building into condos.

“Ottawa Fire Services are still on location securing the scene and working with city staff to determine a course of action to determine if the building can be salvaged,” said OFS in a news release. They added that seven adults and a pet cat will be displaced from adjoining properties.