On February 6 Council agenda there is a report addressing a request to repeal a designation bylaw for a property on 18^th Sideroad, the former Second King Baptist Church.  Given the municipality’s responsibility to conserve heritage properties I concur with the Staff recommendation to not repeal the designation.  As reviewed in the report, even though the property has not been maintained as well as it should have been and that there has been some damage to the identified heritage attributes it still has cultural heritage value or interest that is worthy of protection.

Conserving heritage properties is one of the responsibilities of municipalities. Clarification of this responsibility is provided in the Provincial Policy Statement (2020) which states that that built heritage resources and cultural heritage landscapes shall be conserved where they have been determined to have cultural heritage value or interest for the important contribution the buildings make to our understanding of the history of a place, an event, or a people. This responsibility is regulated under the Ontario Heritage Act (OHA); it is reflected in King’s Official Plan.

Bill 23 has significantly reduced the ability of municipalities to protect built heritage resources but it has not eliminated it.  King Township still has the authority to refuse an application to repeal a designation

As always you can make comments or ask questions about this report.     Contact clerks@king.ca to register for making a deputation and/or send in your comments by email to clerks@king.ca by noon on Monday February 6 and they will be circulated to Council.  And I welcome you to contact me directly or make a comment on my blog.