Last evening, at an awards ceremony held at the Legislative Building, Queen’s Park in Toronto, the Courthouse Hotel received a Lieutenant Governor’s Ontario Heritage Award for Excellence in Conservation presented by The Honourable Elizabeth Dowdeswell, Lieutenant Governor of Ontario. 

The Thunder Bay Heritage Advisory Committee submitted the nomination with the support of City Council. 

The Courthouse Hotel was originally built as the Port Arthur District Court House in 1923, completed in 1924. The building continued to serve as the Superior Court of Justice until 2014.  Purchased in the summer of 2017, an extensive $5 million dollar renovation, touching nearly every aspect of the structure, saw the building transformed into a 40-room boutique hotel, which opened in the spring of 2019. The modern guestrooms with their attention to detail were all designed to fit the existing space while also maintaining ties to their original purpose. Much of the building’s original woodwork was kept, including the hardwood doors. The former main courtroom has become a grand ballroom where weddings and other events are held. The courtroom’s original jury booths and judges’ bench are all still in place along with the room’s beautiful plasterwork, wood trim and panels. 

Throughout the renovation process the hotel’s owner worked to ensure that the building retained its significant historical features by working closely with the Ontario Heritage Trust and the heritage conservation easement in place on the property. Limitations towards refurbishments do exist on the property, placed there to ensure the integrity and character of the building are protected. This property is also listed on the City of Thunder Bay’s Municipal Heritage Register. It was placed on the register in June 2009. 

 

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Contacts:        Laurie Abthorpe, Heritage Researcher, 807-625-3197, archives@thunderbay.ca  

                     Courthouse Hotel, Chris Kowbuz, Manager 807-788-1666 www.courthousehotel.ca