NEWS RELEASE
INNISFIL HERITAGE ADVISORY COMMITTEE
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The Town of Innisfil’s architectural and cultural heritage has played a significant role in helping to tell the stories of our municipality’s history and development.
It has helped to shape our community’s character and identity and foster a sense of place for the hundreds of new residents who make Innisfil home each year.
An important tool for municipalities to recognize and conserve their local heritage resources is the Ontario Heritage Act (OHA). Enacted on March 5, 1975, the OHA’s mandate is protecting and preserving heritage in Ontario. Its adoption culminated in increased community interest in heritage preservation awareness across the province due in part to the demolition (or planned demolition) of properties important to local communities during periods of growth and urban development taking place at the time.
Its practical purpose is to provide the legal and legislative framework and mechanisms to help municipalities like Innisfil identify, protect, and manage their cultural heritage assets. These include the establishment of the Innisfil heritage advisory committee in 2006, the creation of the town’s municipal heritage register, which identifies 57 ‘listed’ (non-designated) properties and 11 individual designated properties as having cultural heritage value to the town and the establishment of the Cookstown Heritage Conservation District in 2014.
However, much like the Town of Innisfil itself, the OHA has had to adapt to evolving government priorities, which include measures to identify growth areas, address the demand for new and affordable housing and emphasize finding efficiencies in support of development. Although recent significant changes to the OHA have challenged municipalities and heritage committees, they have also provided an opportunity to consider and recommend alternatives to demolition, such as the adaptive reuse of heritage buildings for viable new uses and modern functions, which allows for a building’s continued use while remaining a sustainable community asset, including the social advantages of recycling existing properties to help address our current housing challenges and less waste in Simcoe County landfills.
In its 50 years, the Ontario Heritage Act has played an integral role in identifying, protecting and managing the places in our community with cultural or heritage value. Growth will bring new and exciting opportunities for Innisfil, and while it is important to embrace this change, it is also important that the places and spaces that help tell the story of our town are recognized and celebrated. Here’s to the next 50 years of the Ontario Heritage Act.
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