Implementation
Permits
Once the heritage conservation district designation of Brock Avenue is confirmed by the Ontario Municipal Board, the Municipality of Fergus will have certain powers of control over physical change within the district. The main mechanism of control is in the granting or refusing of permits to make such changes.
Process of Application
District designation of Brock Avenue will mean that any
person, or the Municipality itself, cannot erect, demolish,
remove, or significantly alter any building within the
delineated district, unless they have a permit issued by the
Municipality. Council will normally grant, refuse, or grant
with conditions, such a permit within ninety days.
Application
Permits will be needed for any significant, external
alteration to an existing house (see below), an erection of a
new building, and any demolition of an existing house.
Alterations
'Significant external alterations' are defined as any
alteration that is historically inappropriate, or that would
normally require a building permit, or that is irreversible,
or that cannot be remedied in the future without structural
modifications requiring a building or demolition permit.
Minor alterations (e.g., paint colour, window boxes,
television aerials) are those that are reversible, and these
do not require a permit. However, they should be the subject
of mutual agreement among the owners, guided by the District
Committee (see Recommendations, below).
Because the Brock Avenue District is small,
special application forms are not recommended. Permit
applications by owners should include standard information
about location, address, and name of owner, as well as
specific and clear information about the proposed work. The
application should normally include drawings to show both
plans and elevations of the proposed work, and the
Municipality may require these drawings and written
specifications to be professionally executed. There should
also be detailed information concerning the materials and
methods to be used.
Approval
The main principle in assessing a permit application will be the protection, preservation, and enhancement of the character of Brock Avenue. If Council considers that the application does not satisfy this principle, it may deny the permit, or approve it however, any reasonable request will be approved.
Terms and Conditions
Council may attach conditions to a permit, provided that
these conditions respect the objectives of the Ontario
Heritage Act. These conditions must be precise, relevant,
necessary, enforceable, and reasonable. Council may also
require plans and drawings to be submitted, and Council may
specify the materials and methods to be used.
Right of Appeal
If Council fails to process a permit application within
ninety days, or the applicant is dissatisfied with the
refusal of a permit, or the conditions attached to a permit,
the applicant may appeal to the Ontario Municipal Board
within thirty days. The Board must hear the appeal, and it
may (i)dismiss the appeal, (ii)direct that a permit be
issued, or (iii)direct that a permit be issued with certain
terms and conditions.
Demolition or Removal
Demolition
or removal of a house in Brock Avenue cannot be prohibited
under the Ontario Heritage Act, but it would be subject to
the same general conditions as those required for alteration
or erection of a building. That is, a permit would be
required. Council has ninety days in which to respond to an
application for demolition. Council may deny such a permit,
in which case demolition or removal can occur only after 180
days have elapsed from that refusal. This period is intended
to allow Council sufficient time to explore alternative
possibilities of preserving the building in question. These
possibilities include (i) persuading the owner to revoke his
demolition or removal plans; (ii)suggesting alternative uses
for the building; (iii)offering assistance with integration
of the building within a larger scheme; (iv)persuading the
owner to sell the building to the Municipality, or to some
other owner, who will preserve it; and (v)expropriation.
Acquisition and Easements
In addition to administering permit applications, the Ontario Heritage Act (Section 45) allows municipalities to take other measure to conserve buildings within designated districts. These include grants and loans, municipal acquisition, easements, and expropriation.
Should it so wish, and after the district
designation is confirmed, Council will be empowered to
provide either a grant or a loan to the owner of any of the
six houses in Brock Avenue. Such a provision would normally
be made only when the destitution of the owner threatened the
building with a significant risk of irreparable loss or
damage.
Council will also be empowered to acquire such an endangered building, by purchase from the owner.
Council may also negotiate an easement. A heritage easement would be alegal agreement, between the owner of a Brock Avenue house and a public agency, ensuring the preservation of the house while allowing the owner to retain its possession and use. The public agency would be either the Ontario Heritage Foundation, or the Municipality of Fergus, and either of these agencies would be allowed to assign the easement to a local heritage group or other custodian. Easements, which are voluntary agreements, provide the strongest protection, short of outright purchase. They are also more comprehensive than designation, allowing specific agreement on matters such as maintenance, preservation, and restoration. The easement runs with the title of the property, and is binding on all subsequent owners.
Finally, Council has the authority to expropriate a Brock Avenue House, subject to the provisions of the Expropriations Act, if its preservation is deemed essential, and no alternative is available.
Recommendations
Once the Heritage Conservation District is confirmed, the Heritage Fergus Committee will undertake the duties of the District Review Committee. The conservation district is currently zoned as R2, and this should be changed to R1.
Return to the
List of Contents
Return to the
Heritage Centre Wellington main page.