Henry House vandalism is 'like violence to the elderly,' says co-owner
'No doubt, it will have financial impacts on the business,' says Jessica Alsop
Halifax's historic Henry House pub suffered extensive damage after a vandal used patio furniture to access the building's roof and go on a vandalism spree on Monday morning.
Jessica Alsop, the Henry House's co-owner and manager, said once the vandal got on the roof, he ripped vines from the back wall and then climbed to a different section of roof where he broke all of the building's rear windows and damaged some of the property's interior.
At 184 years old, the building is recognized as one of "Canada's Historic Places." It was the home of one of Nova Scotia's Fathers of Confederation, William Alexander Henry, and it survived the Halifax Explosion.
Alsop said the fact someone targeted their building, seemingly for no reason, has shaken her emotionally.
"You wouldn't want this to happen to any building, but it's particularly — it's like violence to the elderly, is how it feels," said Alsop.
Pricey repair costs
She said neighbours spotted the suspect while he was on the restaurant's roof and called police, who arrested the suspect on-site.
Alsop said the repair costs haven't been tallied, but the building's status as a historic site makes restoration costs significantly higher than they otherwise would be.
"No doubt, it will have financial impacts on the business," she said.
Alsop and her family have run the pub for the past 16 years. They're attached to the building, as is the community.
"It isn't the kind of building — when something's this old — that people particularly have ownership over," she said. "They're kind of taking care of it, until the next people are taking care of it."
Alsop said that since she shared news of the vandalism on social media, people from all over Halifax and the world have expressed condolences and shared messages of what the space means to them.
"We just got a message from someone in Australia that had been here last summer, about how much the pub had meant to them," said Alsop. "We've had people come in with their children named Henry, because they've had their first date in the pub or they met there. And so, I think it means a lot, to a lot of people."
Despite the damage, the pub remains open. Alsop said closing during tourism season would be "devastating" for their 40 employees.