\^o£uiax3 O A K V ILLE -C E N TR E T h e Oa k v il l e B e a v e r 1Town Centre Realty 338.6550 Prudential C o n v e n ie n c e A n d L uxury I n Every Ro o m (905) 842-5000 W e e k e n d BIG ON SERVICE ' A 24 Hr. Pager S PUNKRIS SA L E S R E F A Metroland Publication Vol. 38 No. 43 Oakville's Award-Winning Community Newspaper 32 Pages SUNDAY, A P R IL 9,2000 75 Cents Plus GST F ir e d e s tr o y s S h e ll H ouse By W ilm a Blokhuis & H oward M ozel OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF An early morning fire on Friday has destroyed the historic Shell House on Lakeshore Road West in Bronte. The cause of the fire is unknown. `The damage was so extensive that we were unable to determine the origin and the cause of the fire," said Oakville Deputy Fire Chief John de Hooge, late Friday afternoon. " It was so extensive that there was nothing left to investi gate." He was unable to provide a financial estimate of the damage because, "that figure would depend on whether the building was to have been demolished or restored." According de Hooge, fire crews received the call just before 8 a.m. and spent a couple of hours "knocking down" the blaze. Upon arrival, they found all the windows boarded up, mak ing the job of spraying water inside the structure difficult. It was obvious, he (See 'Shell' page 4) Photos by Barrie Erskine Oakville firefighters (above) pour water on the Shell House after the west wall collapsed and fire broke through the roof Friday morning. Firefighters (left) reposition their hoses to contain the fire from another angle. Firefighters (below) pour water through the burnt out windows of the Shell House in order to combat the fire inside. INSIDE today' s paper U p d a te .................................... 7 Thavel........................................ .23 S p o rts .............................24-25 C lassified........................... .27-31 Special Supplements: Far 1 National Sports, Nation Wide Paving, Wal-Mart, S e a n , PartialDelivery: Cruise Holidays, Little Caesars, Keene Pharmacy, Rabba Fine Foods, Ontario Hydro, Shop & Save, Scott Towels (sample), Fortino's, Holton Job Search, Napoleon Gas, Pharma Plus, Canadian Publications Mail Product Agreement #435-201 OAKTOWN SHOPPING PLAZA Y O U R L A W N C A R E S P E C IA L IS T 7 5 5 0 K e rr S tre e t 8 4 4 -0 2 0 2 UPPER OAKVILLE SHOPPING CENTRE 21-7-7 9kg Bag Fertilizer 59-22-65-0 GREAT VALUE AT Upper M iddle at 8th L ine 8 4 9 -8 4 7 3 S te rg .H P .U J s ; M o n .-F ri. 8 :3 0 a .m .-9 p .m . S a t. 8 :3 0 a .m .-6 p .m . S u n , 9 a .m .-6 p .m . S ale price in effect Sunday, April 9 to Saturday, April 1 5 ,2 0 0 0