Debate Over Preservation of Site
SIDEV planned to build a 15-storey hotel on the property, but faced opposition. For nearly two years Bens sat empty, with its contents and memorabilia stacked inside. The building was one of the top 10 endangered places in Canada, according to the Heritage Canada Foundation. Described as a "cultural icon", an editorial in the Montreal Gazette disagreed, calling it a "cheap, miserable example of art deco," "soulless" and a "charmless collection of drab tan bricks." The Art Deco Society of Montreal wanted it preserved, as a tourist attraction and movie set as it had a Streamline Moderne motif. They wanted the city to stop the demolition and the building be declared a heritage site by the province.
Read more about this topic: Bens De Luxe Delicatessen & Restaurant
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