A Heritage Permit is required for many types of renovations, alterations or demolitions affecting the street-facing façade of a house in an HCD (see above).
Obtaining permission to build, renovate, alter or demolish in an HCD does not entail additional application costs. However, there may be a slight delay while Preservation Services staff reviews the development application to ensure consistency with the HCD guidelines.
Staff in the City’s Heritage Preservation Services office will review the proposal and if necessary recommend changes to the plan that will bring the proposal in line with the District Plan. (If necessary, the application is also circulated to the Advisory Committee at this point). Once the applicant has satisfied the heritage concerns, he or she can apply for a building permit.
The authority to issue Heritage Permits where an application is consistent with the District Plan has been delegated by Toronto City Council to Heritage Preservation Services. Permits for applications that are not consistent with the District Plan (HCD design guidelines) can only be issued by Toronto City Council.