Julie Harris

The appellants appealed a municipal by-law designating their property as having cultural heritage value under the Ontario Heritage Act.

The Tribunal evaluated whether the property, a mid-19th century vernacular wood frame house, met the prescribed criteria under O. Reg. 9/06.

The Tribunal found the property met three criteria: it is a rare and representative example of a Gothic Revival Ontario Cottage, it displays a high degree of artistic merit, and it has contextual value due to its historical links to the area's agricultural roots.

The appeal was allowed in part only to amend the by-law to reflect these specific findings, and otherwise dismissed.

The appellant owner appealed the City of Ottawa's by-law designating their property under the Ontario Heritage Act.

The owner intended to demolish the existing c. 1912 house to build two new homes.

The Tribunal evaluated the property against three criteria under O. Reg. 9/06.

While finding insufficient evidence to establish design/physical value or historical/associative value, the Tribunal concluded the property has contextual value as it helps define, support, and maintain the character of the Highland Park area.

The appeal was allowed in part, but the designation was upheld based on contextual value.

The Township of South Stormont sought to repeal the heritage designation of a municipally-owned property known as the Raisin River Heritage Centre, intending to demolish it.

Several community members and the Architectural Conservancy of Ontario objected to the repeal, referring the matter to the Ontario Land Tribunal.

Applying the test for repeal of designation, the Tribunal found that the property continues to retain cultural heritage value or interest, a point conceded by the Township's own expert.

Consequently, the Tribunal recommended that the designating bylaw not be repealed and advised the municipality to consider adaptive reuse rather than demolition in fulfilling its statutory duty to protect heritage properties.

The appellant appealed the City of Ottawa's refusal to enact zoning by-law amendments to permit a 17-storey hotel at 116 York Street, located near the ByWard Market Heritage Conservation District.

The Tribunal determined that a heritage permit was not required because the heritage district had not been upgraded to a Plan under the Ontario Heritage Act.

However, the Tribunal dismissed the appeal, finding that while the architectural design attempted to respect nearby heritage structures, the proposed height and lack of adequate setbacks constituted overbuilding for the small site and failed to meet urban design guidelines.