A background report to be used for a Bond Head heritage conservation district study is missing key geographical areas, said one Bradford West Gwillimbury councillor.
“They completely ignored the portion of West Gwillimbury that was part of our township until 1853,” said Coun. Gary Lamb, noting the report cites “early settlement” but lacks this part of the local history.
“If we’re going to adopt this as a historical document one day that will make us be proud of our heritage, we can’t be wrong.”
West Gwillimbury used to exist at the top of Yonge Street in Holland Landing, run down to where Upper Canada Mall is today, and go across Highway 9, Lamb said.
“All that was in West Gwillimbury, and the first village was in Holland Landing. Samuel Lount lived there. Half of Holland Landing was in West Gwillimbury, including the river, including the mills,” he said.
“Every time somebody prints this stuff out because they copy something that someone did and made a mistake 100 years ago, they keep verifying the wrong part. That should be fixed up in here.”
Consulting firm Archaeological Research Associates Ltd. wrote the report as part of Phase 1 in the project and has recommended moving forward with a heritage conservation district — a tool that has been used in other municipalities to preserve heritage structures and streetscapes.
The town’s Committee of the Whole, which is made up of council members, approved the recommendation at a meeting in October, but the report had not been put in front of council for a final vote until this week.
Deputy Mayor James Leduc said he also had some problems with the report, including the use of SurveyMonkey to complete online surveys because it does not ask for a postal code, so technically anyone around the world could provide input, instead of just local residents.
Coun. Mark Contois also suggested some of the buildings included in the review are not what he considers heritage buildings because they are only 50 or 60 years old.
Council voted to defer a decision on the report until someone from Archaeological Research Associates can give it and the town’s heritage committee a presentation on the report and answer some questions.
