Kootenay School of the Arts
DESCRIPTION OF HISTORIC PLACE
The Kootenay School of the Arts complex is comprised of the stone portions and wood frame second floor additions on the southeast corner of Victoria and Josephine Streets in the Uphill neighbourhood of Nelson, B.C.
HERITAGE VALUE
The earliest stone portion of the Kootenay School of the Arts complex (the section farthest from Josephine Street on Victoria Street) is important culturally and aesthetically for being one of the earliest stone buildings in the city, and for its original use as the city offices and jail. Other important buildings in Nelson used stone for its impressive aesthetic qualities, but the use of stone in the original 1897 jail building and its 1902 addition stemmed from the practical need for a non-combustible and secure construction material in the growing and sometimes unruly frontier town full of single men.
The building is important for having been designed by local architect Arthur Edward Hodgins, who also designed the Nelson Daily News Building at 266 Baker Street.
The site is important for its history as a group of residential lots used for public institutions of varying nature. After its use as a jail, the site was used to house city offices and a fire station in 1899 (building now replaced), while by 1923 the present stone buildings were all constructed and were being used as city offices (in the original part), warehouse space, and the City of Nelson substation. The historical institutional use of the lots continues with the incorporation of the original buildings into the complex that now forms the Kootenay School of the Arts, while the City Substation continues to operate from one portion of the building.
The building complex is important for the adaptive re-use of its historical building fabric. The accommodation of the electrical substation made good use of the non-combustible secure building; the lock-up served as a store room, and the central office of the original gaol was used for electrical distribution to the streetcar system, businesses and residences.
The majority of the buildings were adapted for re-use as the Kootenay School of the Arts, with second level wood frame additions in 1996 and 2007.
From the City of Nelson Heritage Register, Page XX