WINDSOR, N.S. — One of Windsor’s most iconic landmarks — a looming, crumbling remnant of the area’s textile industry — is in the process of being torn down.
For Hants County singer-songwriter Terra Spencer, it was bittersweet to watch as construction crews dismantled the centre portion of the Nova Scotia Textiles Limited plant in Windsor on Dec. 15.
“It’s just such a beautiful old building that holds so many memories for people. It’s hard to say goodbye even when you know it might be necessary,” said Spencer, over the rumbling of an excavator.
The plant, which was built in the 1880s, employed hundreds of local people over the decades, offering higher than average wages. By the time operations wound down in the early 2000s, the average labour rate was $18 per hour plus benefits and pension.
The site basically sat vacant since 2005, although plans to resurrect and repurpose the building have been attempted. In 2006, for example, the ill-fated condominium-retail plan known as Mill Island Inc. was pitched. The owners wanted to transform the 76,000 square foot building into a mixed retail-residential complex. The goal was to create a functional building that offered high-end accommodations with amenities like a microbrewery, art gallery, grocery store and Swiss bakery.
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Renovations, which included expensive new windows, got underway just as there was a downturn in the economy. Amid mounting financial hardships, that project was scraped. Vandals began smashing in the windows, spray-painting graffiti inside and out.
By 2010, the building and land were listed at $3.1 million. Five years later, that listing had dropped to about $1 million. When it was sold in 2017, it was just shy of $1 million.
“There had been such a big plan to turn it into something beautiful and that fell apart and that made its story that much sadder,” Spencer said of the building’s history.
She has penned two songs relating to the old mill — Cotton Mill and Brick and Mortar. For her, the sight of the mill transports her back to her childhood, back when her family would come to Windsor to shop.
“I realize looking back that this is one of the biggest buildings that I saw regularly as a kid and it was always just so impressive to me. There was just nothing else like it around,” said Spencer, who moved to Windsor about five years ago.
Since Cotton Mill was released in 2018, Spencer said countless people have approached her and shared their memories of the site. Watching the excavators dig into the building was hard for her — as it was for many others who sat in their vehicles looking on.
“I can’t really explain why it holds so much of my heart. This is a sad day,” she said.
Action required
In February of this year, a portion of the roof collapsed, triggering a renewed interest by the municipality to have the unsightly, and now unsafe, site cleaned up.
“When part of the roof caved in, that seemed to be the writing on the wall that this place was really in trouble and there’s been a lot of talk since,” said Spencer.
“I think I started preparing for this day but it’s still hard to see.”
Abraham Zebian, West Hants Regional Municipality’s mayor, said the building inspector had to get involved.
“It’s a building that attracts attention. It’s a building that is a magnet for some curious bystanders and people. When that portion of the building collapsed … it became unsafe. We had to take action and get the developer to move on some sort of action on their end,” he said.
The former plant is located on Nesbitt Street, near the Highway 101 off ramp for Exit 6 to downtown Windsor. It’s about a 40-minute drive to Halifax.
A Dec. 21 deadline was provided to the developer, requesting that they “remedy the situation.”
A couple of weeks ago, the property owner requested a demolition permit, Zebian said.
The mayor said he’s unsure if the entire building is coming down, or if a portion of the building will be salvaged.
Zebian said while the building holds a lot of memories for people who worked there or who had family members that did, it’s time to look towards the future and what redevelopment could occur.
“I know this developer in particular loves history. His talks in the past have been … (focused on) bringing back portions of the old textile mill or try to incorporate it into anything he does do in the future,” said Zebian.
“It’s exciting, in a way, to see what they do come up with but it’s sad at the same point to have it fall into this state.”
Spencer said there was a lot of talk online and in the community about what the future may hold for the site. She’s hopeful the developer will somehow find a way to incorporate the immediately-recognizable building into his future plans for the property.
“It’d be nice to see some of it preserved in some way, if that’s possible — just to honour what was here.”
The site owner was unable to be reached as of press time.
