Oakville News N.M.
Knox Presbyterian Church received a grant to restore three stained-glass windows.
Oakville continues to be a leader in preserving the heritage and cultural character of the town. In the tenth year of the Heritage Grant Program, Oakville Town Council approved nearly $138,000 in funding for 47 restoration projects on private heritage properties. The funds will help heritage properties improve their structural stability through stucco repairs, historic roof replacement, window restorations, and others to preserve the properties.
One of the recipients was Know Presbyterian Church at Lakeshore Road East and Dunn Street in Downtown Oakville. The iconic downtown landmark has about 300 parishioners and opens its doors to several community groups, such as Community Living Oakville and the Oakville Horticultural Society.
Knox received a $6,500 grant to restore three historic stained-glass windows, one of which was donated in 1947. The actual cost to do the work was well over $100,000, which was paid for by the congregation.
Other grant recipients include schools, businesses, places of worship, a cemetery, many heritage homes, and trees that are part of a designated cultural heritage landscape.
To be eligible for the grant program, the property must have an official designation as part of the Official Heritage Register in line with the Ontario Heritage Act. The grant applicant must also put in their funding to receive matching grants from the town for up to $15,000 per property. More details are available online in the June 12 staff report and the Heritage Planning page.
Including this year, the Heritage Grant Program has provided $944,000 in grants for 215 restoration and conservation projects worth more than $6 million over the last ten years. Heritage Grant Program applications will next open in January 2024.
Each year, the Heritage Grant Program offers a total of $120,000 in funding, and this year, an additional $17,965 was allocated from unused grants, developer contributions and heritage fees. The Heritage Grant Program, now in its tenth year, received 55 applications in 2023 – the largest so far, for renovations and upgrades to heritage-designated projects.
The town has 614 officially designated properties, either standalone or as part of the four Heritage Conservation districts. Another 294 properties that are not designated but have cultural value are on the Municipal Heritage Register.
Recent legislative changes as part of Bill 23 require the undesignated heritage properties to be removed from the Municipal Heritage Register unless they achieve designation by 2025. The town has initiated a Heritage Designation Project to evaluate the merits of designating approximately 80 listed properties by 2025 to conserve Oakville’s cultural heritage resources.
