Grants, Incentives & Relief

Properties designated under Part IV or Part V of the Ontario Heritage Act will be provided with an aluminum plaque following Council’s adoption of the designation by-law to publicly recognize the heritage value of their property.

Properties designated under Part IV or Part V of the Ontario Heritage Act are eligible for a matching grant of up to $3,000 per year through the Heritage Property Grant Program to assist with conservation of a property's identified heritage attributes, subject to eligibility and funding available through the Heritage Foundation of Halton Hills. Applications are accepted after April 1 and are due June 1 of each year, and will be made available online early each year.

Program Guidelines

Application is available online starting in March and accepted from April 1st to June 1st annually.

• Owners of properties designated under the Ontario Heritage Act can receive grants from the Town of Halton Hills toward the conservation and restoration of the heritage features of the designated properties.

• Grants are administered through Heritage Halton Hills, and if approved, are given to a maximum of $3,000 per application, provided this is matched by an equal amount from the property owner.

• This program is dependent on the funding available. The actual amount of matching grants may fluctuate year to year as a result.

• All grant-funded work must be completed within 12 months. A single 6-month extension may be given upon written request and committee approval.

• New Grant Applications will not be accepted until all previously approved Grant-funded projects for that property have been completed and approved.

Definitions

• Applicant - the owner of the property applying for the grant, or their agent, if the agent is authorized in writing by the owner to act as agent.

• Town - The Corporation of the Town of Halton Hills.

• Designated Heritage Property - real property (and includes all buildings, structures and landscape elements thereon) that are designated under Part IV or Part V of the Ontario Heritage Act.

• Heritage Attributes - the principal features, characteristics, context and appearance that contribute to the cultural heritage value of a designated heritage property.

• Maintenance - the routine, cyclical, non-destructive actions necessary to slow the deterioration of a historic place. It entails: periodic inspection; routine, cyclical, non-destructive cleaning; minor repair and refinishing operations.

• Conservation - the act or process of applying measures necessary to sustain the existing form, integrity, and materials of a historic property.

• Restoration - the process of accurately revealing, recovering, replicating or representing the state of a heritage attribute at a particular period in its history, while protecting the cultural heritage value of the property.

Applications are reviewed and formally approved by Town Staff in consultation with Heritage Halton Hills. Work conducted with the assistance of grant funding is monitored by Town Staff in consultation with Heritage Halton Hills.

Grant funds are paid out by Heritage Halton Hills to the Designated Property Owner based on receipts for the actual project cost(s) and a review of the completed work. 

Grant Amount

The grant given is a maximum of $3,000 and is dependent on the funding available. It must be matched by an equal contribution from the owner or any other source.

Frequency of Grant

A property may receive one grant per calendar year, providing funding is available. However, as per HERITAGE-2017-0007, new applications cannot be submitted until the previously approved project is completed and signed off.

Eligible Properties

To be eligible, a property must be:

• located within the Town of Halton Hills; and

• designated under Part IV of the Ontario Heritage Act, wherein the designation by-law has been registered on title; or 

• situated within a Heritage Conservation District designated under Part V of the Ontario Heritage Act.

Please note that the property cannot be in tax arrears or subject to compliance and enforcement orders issued under property standards and maintenance by-laws, the Ontario Fire Code and the like.

Designated heritage properties owned by any level of government are not eligible, except where a nonprofit, community group has assumed responsibility for maintenance of the property by long-term lease or legal agreement. In such cases, that organization may make an application.

Eligible Projects

Any new work that directly and appropriately conserves, restores and/or enhances heritage attributes is deemed eligible. Eligible work includes the costs of labour, materials and equipment. The grant is based on the owner's actual expenditures as verified by invoices and receipts. Donated labour and materials are not considered part of the project costs. Eligible projects fall into three general categories:

1. Conservation

   • Any new work that directly and appropriately preserves, restores, and/or enhances heritage attributes. This would include, for instance, repair of deteriorated original elements such as doors and windows, siding and roofing materials, and other significant features.

2. Reconstruction

   • Work that involves the reconstruction of heritage attributes which still exist, but are beyond conservation or repair. This would include only ACCURATE reconstructions of the original features, using materials, sizes and configurations which match the original.

3. Restoration

   • Work that involves the restoration of heritage attributes which have been lost, but for which the appearance can be clearly determined from documentary sources. These sources must relate to the particular property for which funding is requested, not simply to similar properties in the neighbourhood. The documentation should be in the form of historic drawings or photographs clearly showing the feature(s) to be restored.

   • Restoration is appropriate when the significance of the property during a particular period in its history far outweighs the potential loss of existing materials, spaces, finishes and other attributes

   • The work must be completed according to accepted standards of heritage conservation, as identified in the Standards and Guidelines for the Conservation of Historic Places in Canada

Please note that a Heritage Permit may also be required for the conservation and restoration work.

Poor or defective work is not eligible. Unsatisfactory work includes minor items which can be corrected (such as paint dribbled onto adjacent surfaces) as well as major problems (such as an entire paint job which fails because of inadequate surface preparation, or masonry joints which have been cut out using power tools).

In order to achieve acceptable projects, work undertaken on historic buildings requires care and often involves specialized materials and techniques.

Examples of Eligible Work

The following is a list of typical conservation projects that would be considered for funding. It is not an exhaustive list, but intended to be used as a guide for what would be considered eligible

• Architectural and engineering services, feasibility studies, and preparation of drawings (Note: only applicable to designated heritage properties managed by not-for-profit community groups).

• Repair, reconstruction, and/or restoration of architectural elements such as porches, verandahs, cupolas, columns, brackets, soffits, railings and fascia. Please note that repairs to the ironwork of the houses in the Syndicate Housing Heritage Conservation District shall be in accordance with the recommendations contained in the “Building Condition Review” dated October 2012 by ERA Architects Inc.

• Repair, reconstruction and/or restoration of exterior cladding such as clapboard, wood shingles, pebbledash stucco, board and batten.

• Repair, reconstruction or restoration of wooden windows. Aluminum storms and windows, which are vinyl, aluminum, or PVC-clad, will not be eligible for a grant.

• Repair, reconstruction, or restoration of original exterior doors.

• Repair, reconstruction, or restoration of wooden storm and screen windows where documentation verifies the use of storms and screens.

• Repair, reconstruction, and/or restoration of original chimneys.

• Conserve or replace original roofing materials and flashing. Roofing may include the repair or replacement of the roof deck with matching materials to the original.

• Repair, reconstruction, and/or restoration of interior heritage attributes, features, materials and finishes that are identified in the heritage designation by-law.

• Repair, reconstruction, and/or restoration of masonry and stonework. Please note that repairs to the masonry of the houses in the Syndicate Housing Heritage Conservation District shall be in accordance with the recommendations contained in the “Building Condition Review” dated October 2012 by ERA Architects Inc.

• Cleaning of masonry and stone (if deemed necessary and if using non-destructive cleaning methods); chemical or physical treatments, if appropriate, will be undertaken using the gentlest means possible. Treatments that cause damage to historic materials will not be used.

• Repairs deemed critical to the stabilization and preservation of the property.

• Removal of inappropriate modern materials such as insulbrick and vinyl or metal siding.

• Introduction of an exterior period paint colour scheme. Please note that painting/mineral coating of the black bricks on the houses in the Syndicate Housing Heritage Conservation District shall be in accordance with the recommendations contained in the “Building Condition Review” dated October 2012 by ERA Architects Inc.

• Repair, reconstruction, and/or restoration of fences and outbuildings only if they are specifically referenced as a heritage attribute in the designation by-law.

Please note that a Heritage Permit may also be required for the proposed work.

Examples of Ineligible Work

• Any work completed or started before committee approval.

• Projects that do not contribute to the conservation of heritage attributes of the property, such as the introduction of new features or additions.

• Aluminum storms and windows, which are vinyl, aluminum, or PVC-clad.

• Repairs and upgrades ordered as a result of non-compliance with property standards, by-laws and other applicable by-laws, regulations and legislation.

• Minor repairs; routine household maintenance such as repairing a broken step or a broken window, painting (other than as specified below) and repair of non-original siding or roofing materials (aluminum siding, asphalt shingles, etc.).

• Re-insulating, installation of new heating or cooling systems or other energy efficiency upgrades.

• Driveway paving and repairs.

• Exterior painting is not based on historical research and does not use appropriate period paint colour schemes.

The final determination of what constitutes eligible and ineligible conservation work is at the discretion of Town Staff and Heritage Halton Hills. Work conducted with the assistance of grant funding is monitored by Town Staff in consultation with Heritage Halton Hills.

Properties designated under Part IV or Part V of the Ontario Heritage Act are eligible for an annual refund of 20% of the local, school board, and regional taxes through the Heritage Property Tax Refund Program, subject to eligibility and funding available. 

Application is available online starting in December and accepted from January 1 to February 28 annually.