London's bus rapid transit project 'pausing' to review heritage property impact

Just three weeks before the municipal elections, London's bus rapid transit plan has been put on hold, say officials, while theytry to figure out the significance of almost 70 properties that could be impacted by the project's construction.

The province has asked for amore in-depth analysis of 67 properties along BRT routesto see what, if any, heritage or cultural significance they have, said Jennie Ramsay, the project's director.

The move also comes amid campaigns for and against the $500-million project. Three of the four front-runner mayoral candidates are against the BRT project, as are a number of business owners. Last week, a pro-BRT group was launched, trying to convince people to vote for pro-BRTcandidates.

BRTand heritage impacts

The decision to pause the project was made after consultations with the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport, Ramsey said. BRTofficials realized they needed to look more fully at properties along the route, many of them on Wellington Road at the S-curve north of BaselineRoad.

"This is a 10-year project, so taking a brief time-out to make sure we have this right, it's worth the time to do that," Ramsay said.

"We're just taking the time to do this project right. It's one of the biggest projects in the city's history and we want to make sure that moving forward, we have a clear path."

The properties fall under a broad criteria the province uses to determine historical or cultural significance. Some, for example, are more than 40 years old.

Of the 67 properties, 60 are to be demolished under the current BRT plan.

If any of the 67 properties identified are deemed to have cultural or heritage value, there could be ways to minimize impact on them through design tweaks such as adjusting sidewalk width, or, if a building has to be demolished, putting up a plaque.

It's not clear how long the "pause" to examine the 67 properties will take, but officials say they want to make sure they review everything before the project enters the next phase, which is a 30-day public review, during which people can object on several grounds, including impact to heritage properties.

That 30-day periodwas supposed to begin this Thursday but will now be pushed back while the heritage properties are examined.

Heritage important to consider

City officials have been working closely with the province and with members of London's Advisory Committee on Heritage. There are 16 properties that already have heritage designation that the BRTroutes will go past, but not directly impact.

"Protecting heritage properties isn't just about protecting old or pretty properties," said Derek Dudek, the chair of the London Advisory Committee on Heritage.

"Sometimes they have cultural or historical significance. They might not be the best looking buildings but they're important to the history of the city."

The buildings might have housed an important Londoner, for example, he said.