There are serious flaws in…

There are serious flaws in Schedule 11, and it should be removed from Bill 108. My concerns are:

* It takes away my local community's right to say what is important to us, what parts of the past the community values and wishes to pass on to future generations. Currently my elected representatives decide this, on the advice of our Municipal Heritage Committee and our highly trained heritage planner.

* It gives the final authority to define what heritage is significant, worthy of protection, to a non-elected body, the Local Planning Appeals Tribunal (LPAT).

* No current LPAT members have any background in heritage. Nor are they required to have heritage expertise or an understanding of the values of the community they are judging.

* There is no need to give uninformed and untrained LPAT members the right to define a local community's heritage. The current regulations 9/06 and 10/06 work.They provide criteria that help ensure communities are objective and consistent across Ontario. The specialist Conservation Review Board (CRB) reviews municipalities' work and provides an expeditious, low-cost alternative to lengthy LPAT appeals.

* Don't change a rule book that's working. Remove Schedule 11 from Bill 108.