In a community such as Cabbagetown, it’s not surprising that the impetus for a Heritage Conservation District (HCD) came from the “grassroots.” After all, Cabbagetown has a well-established preservation association, a deep sense of community pride, and a unique architectural heritage often touted as “North America’s largest collection of Victorian homes.” Yet, in Toronto, HCDs are unusual – and a grassroots approach to creating them is even more unusual. So far, only four HCDs have been approved in the city, and all were “top-down initiatives” proposed and implemented by Heritage Toronto back in the “glory days” when staff and resources were plentiful.

In 1995, Peggy Kurtin, then President of the Cabbagetown Preservation Association, began working with a dedicated group of individuals to put together the initial study to establish the HCD. She says, “We knew it would be an uphill battle because it hadn’t been done this way before.” Fortunately, the volunteer group had enormous tenacity. The study had been limited to Metcalfe Street, one of the most charming and best-preserved streets in Cabbagetown. Metcalfe Street exudes a sense of cohesiveness, probably because it features a uniform style of wrought iron fencing due to a communal agreement in the past. In both a cultural sense and an architectural sense, Metcalfe Street was an excellent candidate for a HCD.

Although the volunteer group was delighted by the warm endorsement in official circles, a proposal was made to expand boundaries that also expanded the workload. Kurtin says, “Most people have no idea how time-consuming this process is – every single house in the area must be researched at the City Archives and cross-checked at the Registry Office, and then catalogued with a formal written description and photograph.” The project kept a corps of twelve volunteers working for months.

In addition to historical research, the process of gaining official status as an HCD brings many other challenges. One of the most delicate is what is sometimes called “managing the public process” – making sure that resident homeowners are well-informed and invited to provide their comments and express their concerns. The ideal goal is to gain unanimous support from homeowners in the area.

The delicate, and somewhat political issue, is homeowners’ rights. When an area becomes an HCD, homeowners must seek special approvals to make architectural alterations which must generally conform to the historical guidelines that have been established for the district. In the Metcalfe Street proposal, it was decided that guidelines would be limited to the exterior facades of the homes and the streetscape. In other words, homeowners would be free to make whatever interior renovations they wished, assuming they complied with standard building regulations. As part of the process, a Steering Committee was formed to include community representatives from each of the five streets in the expanded area, and representatives from key official sectors. Public meetings were held and went surprisingly smoothly. In fact, Kurtin says the only complaint they heard was from one homeowner outside of the proposed district, wondering why his home hadn’t been included!

Clearly, in the case of the proposed Metcalfe Street HCD, homeowners recognize there are many benefits, some of which are financial. Studies suggest that real estate values generally go up. In Toronto, municipal heritage staff offer grants for historic renovation and supply some cost-free advice and expertise.

Despite the enthusiasm for the Metcalfe Street HCD and unanimous support from all homeowners in the area, it is not yet an official reality. Assuming the proposal gets the right blessings along the way, it must still go to the Ontario Municipal Board for final approval.

As Kurtin says, “It’s an onerous process – not something you do lightly.” When asked why she has put so much time and energy into it, she says, “I chose to live here because I liked the character of the area. That’s what attracted me to the area. I don’t want that to change.”

Kathy Farrell