Planning recommends change to heritage designation bylaw

Sept. 21: Planning Public Meeting 7:00 p.m. Council Chambers
Police Services Board 1:30PM Committee Room
Audit Committee 9:30AM Council Chambers
Sept. 26: Council Economic Development Workshop 9:30-4 p.m. Council Chambers

Sept. 27: Council Meeting 7:00 p.m. Shire Hall

Sept. 28: Library Board Meeting at the Picton Branch 2:00 p.m.
Sept. 29: Committee of the Whole Meeting 1 p.m. Council Chambers

Planning recommends change to heritage designation bylaw

In July 2011, Prince Edward County council approved changes to the heritage property designation process – including a change to remove the requirement of an owner’s consent to designate.
Planning, at its meeting Wednesday, Sept. 21 will recommend that a bylaw to adopt the amendment to the official plan be enacted as recommendations of the planning report are consistent with the Ontario Heritage Act.
A letter of concern from Edith Justin, who was owner of the Brick Church, has been provided for council’s consideration.
Justin lists several concerns with the proposal, including a loss of individual property rights, the potential to delay real estate transactions, overly burdensome restrictions on properaty alteration, and the cost of maintaining a designated property.
“It should be noted that it is anticipated that only in rare circumstances will council exercise its ability to designate a property without an owner’s consent”, the report states.
“Hypocrisy in the form of saying ‘this does not affect me personally or finacially’ will not suffice here, writes Justin. “It may well be that a building forcibly made ‘heritage’ and therefore cannot be demolished will cost the present owner too much money or is impractical to restore to its originally built form. How long would that kind of circumstance last before it became a public blight” How does the Society propose to force an unwilling heritage property owner to maintain and spend his money in the direction the society wants when he wishes to spend it in an entirely different direction” Say, like gutting and changing previous layouts and usages? What does the society plan for that kind of contingency” How further invasive can this kind of a bylaw become?
“We should all know all eventualities before we open a door we cannot then close,” she concluded.
The new heritage designation policy here:
https://princeedwardcounty.civicweb.net/Documents/DocumentList.aspx?ID=49252