Notice of intention to designate - 330 Watson Avenue

On August 14, 2023 Oakville Town Council resolved to pass a Notice of Intention to Designate the following property under Section 29 of the Ontario Heritage Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. O.18, as amended, as a property of cultural heritage value and interest:

Robertson House
330 Watson Avenue
Lot 198 and PT Lot 199, Plan 113; Town of Oakville
 

Description of property

The property at 330 Watson Avenue is located on the west side of Watson Avenue, between Macdonald Road and Galt Avenue in the Brantwood neighbourhood. The property contains a 1922 two-and-a-half storey brick house with stucco cladding.
 

Statement of cultural heritage value or interest

 

Design and physical value

The subject house has design and physical value as a representative example of an early 1900s Period Revival house with elements of Tudor Revival and English Cottage styles. The house was built in 1922 with design elements from these styles, such as: side gabled roof with jerkinhead gables and dormer; a covered entrance porch; a mix of materials including wood, brick, and stucco; multi-paned wooden windows; decorative brick details around the windows, porch and roofline; rustic wooden elements such as timbers under the roof, wooden soffits, and exposed eaves; front porch with bell-cast roof, decorative wooden pillars and a panelled wooden door flanked by elegant sidelights, and lakestone knee wall. 
 

Historical and associative value

The home has cultural heritage value for its direct associations with the development of the local residential area known as ‘Brantwood’. Developed in the early 1900s, this subdivision was designed with large lots and mature trees, and was sold to city dwellers as a secluded, beautiful and modern neighbourhood in which to construct their own cottage or stately home. The property is also directly associated with the Robertson family, who lived on the property for nearly a century. 
 

Contextual value

The subject property has contextual value because it supports and maintains the historical residential character of the Brantwood neighbourhood. It was one of the earliest buildings in Brantwood and still retains exterior heritage aspects that have lent to the neighbourhood’s character over the last 100 years. It is physically, functionally, visually, and historically linked to the surrounding residential neighbourhood and places the Brantwood area’s origins in a specific timeframe. The home is a prominent building on the street and its presence is important for the protection of Brantwood’s historic character.
 

Description of heritage attributes

Key attributes of the property at 330 Watson Avenue that exemplify its cultural heritage value as a Period Revival home built in the Arts and Crafts era, as they relate to the two-and-a-half storey house, the one-storey porch, and the one-storey attached garage, include: 
 

• The massing and form of the two-and-a-half storey building with side gable jerkinhead roof and jerkinhead central dormer on the north elevation;
• Wooden soffits and fascia on upper roofs and porch roof;
• Exposed eaves on second storey roof and porch roof;
• Decorative wooden timbers on half-storey;
• Stucco cladding;
• Stucco-clad chimneys on east and west elevations;
• One-storey front porch on south elevation with bell-cast roof, wooden pillars and detailing;
• Front entrance with panelled wooden door and wooden sidelights;
• Brick detailing throughout the house, including sills, lintels, skirting and decorative ‘trim’;
• Fenestration on all elevations, except for the first-storey window opening on the west elevation that was originally a door opening; 
• The use of wooden multi-paned windows throughout the house, based on the historic window designs; and
• One-storey attached garage with decorative wooden overhang above garage door.

Key attributes of the property at 330 Watson Avenue that exemplify its cultural heritage value, as they relate to the property itself, include: 
 

• Low lakestone knee wall and lakestone columns along Watson Avenue.

Any objection to this designation must be filed no later than September 15, 2023.  Objections should be directed to the Town Clerk, 1225 Trafalgar Road, Oakville, Ontario L6H 0H3.

Further information respecting this proposed designation is available from the Town of Oakville. Any inquiries may be directed to Carolyn Van Sligtenhorst, Supervisor of Heritage Conservation at 905-845-6601, ext.3875 (TTY 905-338-4200), or by email at carolyn.van@oakville.ca.