The West Vancouver Historical Society and the Navvy Jack Citizens Group are at a critical juncture in their quest to save one of the district’s most important heritage buildings.
The Navvy Jack House is West Vancouver’s oldest surviving building. Tonight (Oct. 5), the district will be discussing whether the 148-year-old link between the North Shore’s Indigenous peoples and white settlers can be saved from demolition.
“A series of studies done by Hugh Johnston in 2000 for the West Vancouver Historical Society, heritage expert Don Luxton in 2017, and the Navvy Jack Citizens Group, reporting this evening, all agree that the original Navvy Jack house is likely salvageable and is worth preserving,” says group member Rod Day in an email, noting that the district’s official community plan states that the “heritage values of the Navvy Jack House and the Ferry Building should be preserved.”
Day is one of the speakers on the agenda for tonight’s council meeting.
The house got its name from one of its first occupants, John “Navvy Jack” Thomas. He married Slawia (Magdeleine), the granddaughter of Squamish Nation Chief Kiepalano. “Their union was one of the first between the local indigenous people and the incoming settler population, and their offspring continue to live in the Squamish, Tsleil-Waututh and Musqueam lands of the Lower Mainland,” the historical society says.
The house is near Lawson Creek. The West Vancouver Streamkeepers Society plans to install a salmon rearing habitat at the mouth of Lawson Creek, which runs alongside the home. In order to comply with fisheries laws, that work must be done in August 2021 and “leaving the house where it is is not an option,” according to the group.
District staff estimate the demolition of the Navvy Jack House will cost $150,000 to $200,000, but restoring it will be $2.2 to $2.4 million. (The district's website about the project is here.)
The historical society is recommending the Navvy Jack House be moved to another spot on the same location as the first stage of its preservation.
While members of the public can attend the meeting in person, with COVID-19 precautions, the district encourages people to watch the meeting online here. The protocol for speaking about the issue can be found on the district’s website here.
The meeting starts at 6 p.m.
A history of the house can be found in a North Shore News feature here and the historical society's Navvy Jack House site here.
Martha Perkins is the North Shore News’ Indigenous and civic affairs reporter. This reporting beat is made possible by the Local Journalism Initiative.
