Committee urges heritage designation for stone house

Habitat for Humanity wants to sell 44 Bridge St. with a demolition permit attached, though its unclear what buyer would do with it

Selwyn Township’s municipal heritage committee is recommending to township council that a heritage designation be placed on a stone house in Lakefield from 1858 — even as the house is about to be sold with a demolition permit attached.

Township council will have the final say on it at a meeting on Tuesday; if council wants to place a designation on 44 Bridge St., the demolition permit will be rendered void.

In the meantime the building won’t likely be razed: the current owner, Habitat for Humanity, promised township council earlier this month it won’t start demolishing the house while council is considering a heritage designation.

The prospective buyer hasn’t publicly come forward or stated plans for the property.

But the buyer offered to acquire it with a valid demolition permit, which a Habitat official said they obtained to make the property more appealing to buyers.

Habitat for Humanity had plans to develop affordable condos on the property, but then decided against it after facing financial challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic.

On Thursday the heritage committee — made up of Coun. Anita Locke, Stephen Gavard, Grant Murphy and James Forrester — met to review a new comprehensive brief to justify the designation.

The brief was written by consultant Emily Turner, and states that 44 Bridge St. has enough cultural and heritage value to merit designation.

The house has heritage value because it’s the only Georgianstyle stone house in Lakefield, the brief states, and has key details of the architectural style such as sash windows and a gable roof with matching chimneys.

Furthermore the house’s first two owners and occupants were Frank Hyde D’Arcy and John Hull, states the brief, “prominent men” who also owned and operated the local flour mill.

Township planning manager Rob Lamarre was also at the meeting as support staff; he told the committee that Turner’s brief shows that 44 Bridge St. meets the criteria for designation under the Ontario Heritage Act.

The committee resolved to recommend designation to township council, which meets on Feb. 23 to decide.

At a township council meeting on Feb. 9, council heard arguments both for and against designation.

Habitat chair Fred Bennett said they said it would be “catastrophic” for the organization if its current buyer were scared off by a heritage designation.

But citizens Michael Chappell and Jackie Ouellette both argued for preserving history, and several protests have been held outside the property lately by concerned citizens calling for heritage protection for the house.