The Globe and Mail

Renovations scheduled to begin today at Rogers' Chocolates, one of Victoria's 36 sites of National Historic Significance, are leaving a foul taste in the mouth of local heritage protectors. "I'm apoplectic," said Nick Russell, president of Victoria's Hallmark Society. "It's one of the most significant interiors in Western Canada. It's like a time capsule from 1917. It doesn't need to be changed." The need, company officials say, arises because the two-storey structure, built in 1903, is located on a stretch of Government Street in downtown Victoria that draws hordes of tourists. During the busy summer season, Rogers' 88-square-metre premises can't comfortably accommodate swells of sweet-toothed customers, so the store will grow to almost 150 square metres, achieved by removing a wall to expand into the store's back area, said Rogers' marketing manager Tracey Robertson.