The South Shore Joint…

The South Shore Joint Initiative of Prince Edward County has cultural heritage as part of its mandate to protect the South Shore of Prince Edward County.

In this capacitiy we fully support the comments of the Architectural Conservancy of Ontario reproduced here.

The proposed changes threaten our heritage but won’t lead to more truly affordable or attainable housing.

The change in the “threshold” for designation, requiring that two criteria be met rather than one, will make it almost impossible to protect humble buildings and places associated with the historic contributions of Black, Indigenous, Franco-Ontarians, multicultural and 2SLGBTQIA+ communities in Ontario.

The changes to the Ontario Heritage Act, supported by the Minister of Citizenship and Multiculturalism, will stymie recognition of cultural diversity in Ontario.

The changes to the Municipal Heritage Register and listing undermine the importance of local planning, limit the ability of local Municipal Heritage Committees, and place undue pressure on municipal staff and volunteers to protect local heritage properties.

Forcing municipalities to designate all listed properties within 2 years or drop them from the Register is draconian and totally unrealistic. It will result in tens of thousands of listed sites losing what little protection they have.

Property owners shouldn’t be forced to choose between listing and designation to recognize the heritage significance of their property.

Changes to the Standards and Guidelines for the Conservation of Provincial Heritage Properties leave provincially owned landmarks such as Ontario Place vulnerable to the whims of politicians and developers.

The quickest way to create more housing is to re-use and adapt existing older buildings. Convert old schools to affordable apartments, for example, or homes for seniors. Fix and re-use our older neighbourhoods already serviced and connected by transit to offer affordable housing alternatives.

Conserving Ontario’s heritage is of the utmost importance. Loss of heritage sites and our older buildings means loss of jobs in the renovation and tourism industries, and loss of our sense of place. Destroying older buildings releases embodied carbon and contributes to climate change.

John Hirsch
President South Shore Joint Initiative
Bloomfield, Ontario