The City of New Westminster has outlined its plan of attack for implementation of a heritage conservation area in Queen’s Park.
In June, city council adopted a heritage conservation area for the neighbourhood and outlined four items it wanted to be done once the heritage conservation area (HCA) was adopted.
“I’m really happy to see this report step-by-step outlines over the next two years how the city will be engaging in that and the work on the incentive portion, which will occur later this year and then be completed in early 2018,” said Mayor Jonathan Cote. “I know that was a big part of the discussions we were having, something in the neighbourhood we wanted to make sure we followed through with that.”
Council has endorsed a work plan for implementation of the HCA and timelines: an update to the minimum maintenance standards for protected heritage properties bylaw (June 2017 to June 2019); zoning-based incentives for protected properties (this work is underway and will be done by May 2018); a study on properties in the “special limited” category (June 2018 to June 2019); and a program to encourage voluntary protection in the HCA of homes built after 1941 (June 2017 to June 2019.)
In addition to further work in the four specific areas, the city has committed to doing a formal review of the policy in the spring of 2019 to assess the impact of the HCA and analyze the outcomes of the HCA’s design guidelines.
The HCA protects houses built in 1940 and earlier, by putting them in an “advanced” (protected) category, which means they require a permit for demolitions, construction to the front, sides or visible roof of the existing building and construction of new buildings and associated landscaping. Houses built in 1941 or later are in the “limited” category, which means they aren’t protected, while “special limited” is a temporary category for properties considered to be protected because of their age, but may not be able to realize economic values from possible incentives because of the physical characteristics of their lot and house.
Kathleen Langstroth, president of the Queen’s Park Residents’ Association, thanked the city for laying out the work plan for the conservation area.
“We know that the conservation area was implemented in June but it had several caveats on it,” she said. “We are pleased to see that there has been a schedule for the work plan, and we look forward to holding the city to those deadlines and hopefully having a positive and successful completion of the four sections that still need to be addressed.”
The creation of a heritage conservation area divided many residents in the Queen’s Park neighbourhood, with some supporting protection of the heritage homes and others expressing concerns about issues such as loss of property rights and decreased property values.
Queen’s Park resident Mark Bice said he was among the residents who were disillusioned with the outcome of the process that saw council strip residents of their rights and put families in financial jeopardy. He said the city’s “little experiment” has already cost his family hundreds of thousands of dollars and the work being done as part of the work plan should have been done before the HCA was adopted.
“There are many families opposed to this bylaw because it violates one of the most fundamental rights we have as Canadians – the basic idea that homeowners should be able to make decisions about their own homes and properties,” he said. “I no longer live in my home. I live in a public monument. Of course, the city expects me to cover all the costs and some other risks associated with this public monument – property taxes, mortgage payments, cost and lost value. If I sound upset, please understand why: your decision has taken away my family’s financial security.”
