Heritage Designation Project

About the project

In October 2022, Ontario’s Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing introduced Bill 23, More Homes Built Faster Act. The bill included several amendments to the Ontario Heritage Act, including a two-year time limit for listed properties to remain on municipal heritage registers. Listed properties are properties that have been identified as having cultural heritage value but have not yet been designated.

In response to this change, in early 2023, Policy Planning & Heritage initiated the Heritage Designation Project to designate approximately 80 listed properties prior to their required removal from Oakville’s Heritage Register on January 1, 2025. Since that time, Bill 200, Homeowner Protection Act, was passed in 2024 which extended the two-year time limit from January 1, 2025 to January 1, 2027. 

The majority of prioritized designations were successfully completed in 2023 and 2024. Staff will continue to proactively designate some additional properties, including town-owned properties in 2025 and 2026, leading up to the January 1, 2027 deadline.

Process

Heritage Planning staff produce Cultural Heritage Evaluation Reports (CHERs) for the town’s prioritized listed properties. These documents provide an overview of the property and an evaluation of its cultural heritage value to determine if it meets the heritage designation criteria of the Ontario Heritage Act. 

These CHERs are reviewed at monthly Heritage Oakville Advisory Committee meetings and Planning and Development Council meetings. For each property, Council decides whether or not to proceed with designation. 

Staff reaches out to property owners of these listed properties throughout the evaluation and designation process.

What heritage designation means

Designation ensures that heritage properties are managed for future generations and that important buildings and landscapes in Oakville are protected. Designation is not meant to prevent change, but to help manage it to protect the town’s character and uniqueness of place. Heritage designation helps reduce waste by re-using and conserving existing structures and employs local crafts and tradespeople who maintain these important sites.

Each individual heritage property has a designation by-law that identifies the property’s heritage features. In most cases, these features are limited to the exterior of the building. Owners of heritage properties need a heritage permit before making changes to these heritage features. Heritage permits are free and most are processed within several business days.

Benefits of heritage designation

As a designated heritage property owner, you will:

• Be part of a thriving heritage community in Oakville with over 170 individually designated properties and over 700 properties protected through four heritage conservation districts. 
• Have access to access to the town’s Heritage Grant Program, a matching grant program that helps cover the cost of eligible restoration and repair projects for designated heritage properties.
• Help conserve the cultural heritage of your neighbourhood for future generations. 
• Receive a bronze plaque to display on the designated heritage building or property.