Strict reno laws threaten heritage buildings
Too-strict laws about renovation of heritage buildings are actually threatening them, as they make it too difficult and expensive to do the work. So buildings are left empty until their state of deterioration makes it impossible to save them.
jeather 09:44 on 2026-05-21 Permalink
The problem is that they are allowed to remain empty and deteriorate without any cost to the owner.
Ephraim 10:23 on 2026-05-21 Permalink
The Plateau has uneven laws in place. We wanted to replace our staircase with an exact replica… not allowed, we had to go to what they THOUGHT that they were like at the time they were built. The house next door… brand new… replica of what was there before. So, who do you complain about uneven enforcement of the rules?
Kate 10:38 on 2026-05-21 Permalink
Get hold of Dinu Bumbaru and get him to speak for you?
Joey 11:38 on 2026-05-21 Permalink
That would probably be counterproductive…
azrhey 11:54 on 2026-05-21 Permalink
I work in one of the oldest buildings at McGill… in winter we freeze because the windows are “dépoque” and they can’t change them for newer more insulating ones even if they would like exactly the same as the older ones… no double pane glass panels for us..just the flimsy thin panes en vogue in the 1920s. So in winter it’s like working close to an open fridge… we have a schedule to move the plants away from the windows in winter because they’d freeze… )
(OTOH if they let the university change the windows they’d have to deal with all the asbestos in the walls…so maybe that’s not a good idea either….)
Meezly 13:10 on 2026-05-21 Permalink
We had to replace the exterior wooden window sills for our unit in a 100+ yo triplex because they were rotting away. The window company recommended concrete sills, which would’ve looked fine (neutral, innocuous) and more importantly, last a long time. Not allowed! Our only option was to replace the rotted wood with new wood and cover it with plastic-coated aluminum sheets. The metal sheets over wood look ugly as hell, but it’s needed to protect from the rain. The wood will likely rot again in several years. If we had been allowed to use concrete or stone, we wouldn’t have needed the ugly covering and probably never have to replace the sills ever.
Kevin 13:47 on 2026-05-21 Permalink
They don’t build ’em like they used to because they used to build them like garbage.
I know from experience that every decision made by your local permit office is random, and subject to how much you can get the bureaucrat to like you.
@Meezly those covered window sills sound like they have been designed to trap water and rot. Do they have drainage holes?