Notice of Intention to Designate

The Corporation of the City of Richmond Hill

Re:       Notice of Intention to Designate
             11 Centre Street West
             City of Richmond Hill ON L4C 3P3
             City File No.: D12-07103

Take notice that the Council of the Corporation of the City of Richmond Hill (“Council”) intends to designate the above noted property as a property of cultural heritage value or interest under part IV and pursuant to section 29 of the Ontario Heritage Act, R.S.O. 1990,c.0.18.

And take notice that the Council of the Corporation of the City of Richmond Hill stated their intention to designate said property under the Ontario Heritage Act on March 27, 2024.

A statement explaining the cultural heritage value or interest of the property and a description of the heritage attributes of the property is set out below.

Statement of Cultural Heritage Value or Interest:

Dating to 1876, the building at 11 Centre Street West has design value as a rare surviving example of the Victorian Temperance Hall building typology, which was widely applied to Temperance Halls throughout Ontario in the mid- and late-19th century. While converted to residential use in 1909, the building remains legible as a Temperance Hall, and has retained its original scale, form, massing, and orientation towards Centre Street, as well as its simple rectangular plan, front-gabled roof, and the symmetrical organization of bays on its front (south) elevation. The simplicity and sparsity of the building’s design and material palette is also representative of the Temperance Hall typology, and reflects the values of restraint, discipline and frugality that were central to both the Temperance Movement, and the Protestant denominations from which it originated.

The Richmond Hill Temperance Hall has historical value for its direct associations with the Temperance Movement and several fraternal Temperance orders active in Richmond Hill in the 19th and early 20th centuries. The hall was constructed by members of the International Order of Good Templars in 1876, and was used as a community gathering space for different Temperance groups for over 30 years.

Advocating for the avoidance of alcohol as a way of achieving societal good, the Temperance Movement was a significant international movement in the 19th and early-20th centuries. The Temperance Movement is also significant in its early support of equal rights for all human beings, regardless of gender, ethnicity, religion, or socio-economic background, as evidenced in the movement’s admittance of female members as early as the mid-1800s. The Temperance Movement is also directly linked to Richmond Hill’s history as a “dry” town from 1906 to 1962.

The property also yields information about the genesis, growth, and decline of the Temperance Movement in Richmond Hill and nationally during the 19th and 20th centuries, which contributes to a broader understanding of the community, its history, and societal trends and forces during this period.

Located on the north side of Centre Street, west of Yonge Street, the Richmond Hill Temperance Hall has contextual value for defining, maintaining, and supporting the 19th and early 20th century village character of the surrounding area. This village character is typified by low-rise commercial and institutional buildings on Yonge Street, such as the nearby Methodist Church (1881), and Old Post Office (1936), along with fine-grained residential built form from the 19th and early 20th centuries along Centre Street West.

The property also has contextual value for its functional, visual, and historical links to the Methodist Church (1881) at the northwest corner of Yonge and Centre streets. Built within 5 years of each other and approximately 50 metres apart, the two buildings would originally have functioned as an important nucleus for Richmond Hill’s closely linked Temperance and Methodist communities in the late 1800s.

Description of Heritage Attributes:

• The 1 ½ -storey massing and rectangular plan;
• The front-gabled roof;
• The frame construction;
• The symmetrical 3-bay organization of ground-floor openings on the building’s front (south) elevation;
• Flat-headed window openings on the building’s south, east, and west elevations;
• The symmetrical 3-bay organization of ground-floor openings on the building’s front (south) elevation;
• The simplicity and sparsity of the building’s design, representative of the values of restraint, discipline and frugality central to both the Temperance Movement, and the Protestant denominations from which it originated;
• The building’s scale, siting and orientation on the north side of Centre Street West, west of Yonge Street; and
• The house’s modest material palette and architectural features, which contribute to the historical character of Richmond Street and Richmond Hill’s Village Core more broadly.

Note: the building’s 1970s rear (north) addition is not considered to possess any significant heritage attributes.

Notice of Objection:

Any person who objects to the above noted Council’s intention to designate shall, within 30 days after the publication of this notice, serve on the Clerk of the City of Richmond Hill, a Notice of Objection setting out the reason for the objection and all relevant facts.  The last day to submit the Notice of Objection is May 8, 2024.

Service may be made digitally by email to clerks@richmondhill.ca or by delivery personally to the City Clerk or by Regular Mail at the following address:

Stephen M.A. Huycke, City Clerk
The City of Richmond Hill
225 East Beaver Creek Road
Richmond Hill ON  L4B 3P4 

Obtaining Additional Information:

Additional information about heritage planning at the City of Richmond Hill may be obtained by contacting Heritage Planning City staff by e-mail at heritage@richmondhill.ca. Take note that a Notice of Objection may only be served to the Clerk of the City of Richmond Hill as stated above.

Dated this 8th day of April, 2024

Stephen M.A. Huycke, City Clerk
The Corporation of the City of Richmond Hill
225 East Beaver Creek Road
Richmond Hill, Ontario L4B 3P4
E-mail: clerks@richmondhill.ca