Designation will preserve Cabbagetown Southwest home values

Michael Schwartz –

Here is a warning for anyone thinking about demolishing historic buildings in Toronto—it could cost you a million bucks and you might end up in prison.

The penalties for demolishing or even altering an historic residence without permission were set out at a community consultation meeting on June 5 discussing the creation of Cabbagetown Southwest Historic Conservation District (HCD).

Scott Barrett, council’s senior co-ordinator of Heritage Preservation Services, outlined the penalties while explaining the nature of HCDs, how to get an HCD designation.

Cabbagetown already boasts four HCDs: Metcalfe Area, North, South and Northwest. The new district is intended to encompass homes from the south side of Carlton to the north side of Shuter, and from the west side of Parliament to the east side of Sherbourne. The area includes about 700 properties and contains some of the finest examples of residential Victorian architecture in the city.

HCDs, in Barrett’s eyes, “protect and manage change within historic neighbourhoods.”They also record history and evaluate the significance of an HCD and its physical or historical aspects, the setting and surrounds of an HCD, natural and scientific interest and even the social and community factors. In the case of the latter, Barrett cited Chinatown and the Yorkville hippies!

Obtaining HCD status can take two years to achieve and requires the skills and experience of a full range of professionals like planners, architects or historians and archaeologists. Each HCD needs its own separate procedure, and commercial properties are not included in an HCD.

Once an HCD is granted, it is protected under Part V of the Ontario Heritage Act—which is where the penalties come into play.

In addition, the HCD is not there to insist on new properties that Scott Barrett calls “slavish copies” of older ones. A property that “feels good” is what is aimed for.

Property values also play a part: they can better hold their own in market downturns, and homeowners can even obtain a grant of up to 50% towards restoration. Barrett says wood sash windows are another good investment.