Wellington Heritage Conservation District Plan receives final approval from Ontario Land Tribunal

The Wellington Heritage Conservation District Plan has recently been approved by the Ontario Land Tribunal (OLT).

The plan is now available to view on the municipal website.

The WHCD Plan is the second and final part of the Heritage Conservation District planning process. The municipality began in 2019 a WHCD study that determined the Wellington downtown core area met the province's criteria for designation as a Heritage Conservation District. Council adopted the study in May 2021 and directed staff to proceed with the preparation of the WCHD Plan.

After the plan was adopted by Council in September 2022, a property owner in the WHCD zone appealed Council's decision based on objections to some of the site-specific policies and guidelines. After the municipality modified the plan in response to the appeal, the OLT endorsed the changes and the WCHD Plan. Click here to read the OLT's decision.

A Heritage Conservation District (HCD) is an area of special character, combining buildings, landscape features, and their settings that, together, make up a district that has an identifiably distinct “sense of place."

HCD designation is a tool that Ontario municipalities have for managing change in beneficial ways. Designation allows the municipality to manage change within the HCD in ways that will conserve and enhance district character. Designation also celebrates what is special about the HCD, building community pride and encouraging compatible improvements to both public and private properties. Proposed changes of a major sort are regulated by the municipality, using policies and guidelines produced as part of the plan.

The Wellington Heritage Conservation District Plan can be found on the County's website.