Dear Editor:
A recent trip to Belgium to see the grave of my great-uncle who died in World War I took us through Ypres.
The quaint town looked nothing like I expected after hearing stories of the destruction that had befallen it in the war. Churches, buildings, bridges all looked like they had been there for centuries.
We soon found out that Ypres had been reduced to rubble but was rebuilt as it had been (even though Winston Churchill wanted it to remain a ruin to remind people of the tragedy of war).
New Westminster is reeling from the loss of Copp's Shoes and the E.L. Lewis Block.
What's left of this lovely heritage building isn't unlike pictures we saw of how Ypres looked like after the Great War ended.
Elected officials and city staff have called this corner the heart and soul of Columbia Street and have commiserated over its loss.
Let's ensure these weren't crocodile tears being shed and demand that developers, when they feel the suitable period of mourning is over, don't come forward with plans to replace it with a new 30-storey condo tower.
A new building that respects the past and replicates the E.L. Lewis Block would go a long way in healing some of the wounds opened by the loss of this important historic structure.
And the merchants who lost their livelihoods in the fire deserve first crack at re-establishing their businesses once the block is rebuilt.
Jim Hutson, New Westminster
