Cultural Heritage Master Plan Project Update #2: October 19, 2021

Hi Cultural Heritage Master Plan enthusiasts – it’s ERA Architects here again, reporting on our information-gathering activity over the last two months.

We’ve completed an initial draft of an Existing Conditions Report, a document that combines research and analysis on Halton Hills’ history, existing conditions of its Heritage Register (i.e. the Town’s roster of listed and designated heritage properties), current heritage policy framework, and other factors that may forecast future challenges or opportunities for the Town’s heritage resources.

The Existing Conditions Report is key because it lays the groundwork for the strategies, policies and initiatives that will be explored in the Cultural Heritage Master Plan. The report is now under internal review, and we’re looking forward to finalizing it by the end of 2021.

On the public engagement front, our public survey and mapping exercise has been live on this site for almost two months now. We’re hoping to see even more participation in the next two weeks, leading up to its closing date on October 31st. We’ll publicize the exercise again at our Public Open House on Tuesday, October 26th, 6:30-8pm. Please register for the event if you haven’t already!

Additionally, we’ve been workshopping ideas with key stakeholders, including the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation (MCFN), who hold treaty rights to the lands on which Halton Hills exists today. As a starting point, the MCFN will have the opportunity to contribute to the development of a written history of the Halton Hills area and an analysis of key historical themes.

In the coming weeks, we’ll be turning our attention to collecting and synthesizing public engagement results from this platform, the October 26th Public Open House, and more. We look forward to hearing what you all have to say! The public engagement results will be combined with the information we’ve gathered in the Existing Conditions Report to help inform the development of the Cultural Heritage Master Plan.