"WHEREAS The More Homes Built Faster Act, 2022 (Bill 23) received Royal Assent on November 28, 2022. As part of this omnibus Bill, several changes were implemented to various pieces of legislation, including but not limited to, The Planning Act, The Development Charges Act, The Conservation Authorities Act, and The Ontario Heritage Act; and,
WHEREAS subsection 27(16) of the Ontario Heritage Act stipulates that any non-designated heritage property listed on the municipal heritage register as of December 31, 2022 shall be removed from the municipal heritage register on or before January 1, 2025, if the council of the municipality does not give a notice of intention to designate the property under subsection 29(1) of the Ontario Heritage Act on or before January 1, 2025; and,
WHEREAS since January 1, 2023, Town of Caledon Heritage staff and members of this municipal heritage committee (Heritage Caledon) have been diligently working to: review the municipal heritage register; research the heritage value and interest of our 1,091 listed (non-designated) properties; determine which properties should potentially be designated in accordance with the provisions of Section 29 of the Ontario Heritage Act; and take all required steps to designate such properties; and,
WHEREAS given the volume of work required, on October 24, 2023 the Heritage Designation Prioritization Strategy was endorsed with an objective of reviewing and designating 69 priority properties in Phases 1 and 2 by January 1, 2025 given the time constraint imposed; and,
WHEREAS the above-noted work is extremely time-consuming and cannot be completed by December 31, 2024 with the current resources available given other competing interests including reviewing and supporting new housing development proposals; and,
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that Heritage Caledon recommends to Council that the Mayor or Town Clerk be authorized to send a letter to Doug Ford, Premier of Ontario, with copies to Michael Ford, Minister of Citizenship and Multiculturalism, Peter Bethlenfalvy, Minister of Finance; and John Ecker, Chair, Ontario Heritage Trust, requesting Subsection 27(16) of the Ontario Heritage Act be amended to extend the above-noted deadline for five years from January 1, 2025 to January 1, 2030."