Resident funded CHER (Cultural Heritage Evaluation Report)
Thank you, from all of us.
Every one of you who signed this petition has been part of something bigger than you might realize. Your name, your voice, your support, it's what's pushed this issue in front of Council, forced answers out of Town staff, and kept Hartrick House in the conversation when it easily could have been forgotten. We are so grateful.
Here's where things stand:
UPDATE 1:
At the Council meeting on July 13, we learned that Council chose to make this a Town-led demolition application, a decision that effectively bypassed the standard planning process. This means the developer was never required to complete a Cultural Heritage Evaluation Report (CHER) or a Heritage Impact Assessment (HIA), steps that would normally apply to a property like this.
UPDATE 2:
Town staff have now confirmed that an informal heritage assessment completed back in 2017 revealed that the Hartrick House has heritage merit. In Ontario, a property only needs to meet 2 out of 9 criteria to qualify for heritage designation. Despite this, no formal, independent Cultural Heritage Evaluation was ever carried out.
Because the Town hasn't taken this step, residents are now doing it ourselves. We've launched a GoFundMe to hire a qualified heritage planner or architect to complete a proper CHER. This report could give us the concrete, professional evidence we need to ask Council to pause and reconsider its decision.
If you can donate, any amount helps. If you can't, please share the petition and fundraiser so it reaches as many neighbours as possible.
Thank you again for standing with us. We're not done yet.