November 2013 DRAFT REPORT ON Blackfriars/Petersville Heritage Conservation District Study City of London, Ontario Submitted to: Don Menard, Heritage Planner City of London 300 Dufferin Avenue, London, Ontario N6B 1Z2 Report Number: 13-1151-0194-1000 Distribution: REPORT 1 copy - City of London 2 e-copies - City of London BLACKFRIARS/PETERSVILLE HERITAGE CONSERVATION DISTRICT STUDY CITY OF LONDON, ONTARIO Table of Contents 1.0 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................................................... 4 1.1 Purpose and Objectives of Study......................................................................................................................... 4 1.2 Background ......................................................................................................................................................... 4 1.3 Location ............................................................................................................................................................... 5 1.4 Study Approach and Methodology ....................................................................................................................... 8 1.5 What is a Heritage Conservation District? ......................................................................................................... 10 2.0 HISTORICAL CONTEXT ................................................................................................................................................ 11 2.1 Overview ............................................................................................................................................................ 11 2.2 The River, the Land, and the First Occupants ................................................................................................... 12 2.3 Suburban Development: Surveys, Settlement, Incorporation, and Annexation ................................................ 19 2.4 Bridges, Floods, and Protective Measures ........................................................................................................ 50 2.5 The Character of London West .......................................................................................................................... 61 2.6 Effects of History on the Study Area .................................................................................................................. 76 3.0 SOCIO-ECONOMIC ENVIRONMENT ............................................................................................................................ 77 3.1 Community Statistics ......................................................................................................................................... 77 3.2 Population Profile............................................................................................................................................... 77 4.0 ARCHITECTURAL INVENTORY AND ASSESSMENT ................................................................................................. 79 4.1 Character Areas within the Study Area as a Whole ........................................................................................... 79 4.2 Characteristic Building Types in the Proposed HCD.......................................................................................... 80 5.0 VISUAL AND CONTEXTUAL ASSESSMENT ............................................................................................................... 90 5.1 Alignment and Grouping of Buildings ................................................................................................................. 90 5.2 Views and Vistas ............................................................................................................................................... 92 5.3 Approaches To and From the Study Area ......................................................................................................... 94 5.4 Street Trees and Mature Vegetation .................................................................................................................. 96 5.5 Materials, Surfaces, and Textures ................................................................................................................... 100 5.6 Visual Detriments ............................................................................................................................................. 102 5.7 Visual and Contextual Opportunities and Challenges ...................................................................................... 102 6.0 MOVEMENT ................................................................................................................................................................. 103 6.1 Street Network ................................................................................................................................................. 103 November 2013 Report No. 13-1151-0194-1000 1 BLACKFRIARS/PETERSVILLE HERITAGE CONSERVATION DISTRICT STUDY CITY OF LONDON, ONTARIO 6.2 Public Transit ................................................................................................................................................... 103 6.3 Cycling Network ............................................................................................................................................... 103 6.4 Parking ............................................................................................................................................................ 104 6.5 Pedestrian Infrastructure ................................................................................................................................. 104 7.0 LANDUSE PLANNING AND POLICY CONTEXT ........................................................................................................ 105 7.1 General Land Use............................................................................................................................................ 105 7.2 Provincial Policy Statement ............................................................................................................................. 106 7.3 City of London Official Plan, 1989.................................................................................................................... 106 7.4 City of London Zoning By-law .......................................................................................................................... 114 7.5 Development Activity ....................................................................................................................................... 120 7.6 Planning Opportunities & Challenges .............................................................................................................. 124 8.0 PUBLIC CONSULTATION ........................................................................................................................................... 129 8.1 Steering Committee ......................................................................................................................................... 129 8.2 Public Meetings ............................................................................................................................................... 129 8.3 Questionnaires ................................................................................................................................................ 130 8.4 Public Consultation Conclusions ..................................................................................................................... 131 9.0 CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ............................................................................................................. 132 9.1 Heritage Conservation District Boundaries ...................................................................................................... 132 9.2 Heritage Character Statement ......................................................................................................................... 134 10.0 IMPORTANT INFORMATION AND LIMITATIONS OF THIS REPORT ....................................................................... 138 11.0 SOURCES .................................................................................................................................................................... 139 CLOSURE .............................................................................................................................................................................. 143 November 2013 Report No. 13-1151-0194-1000 2 BLACKFRIARS/PETERSVILLE HERITAGE CONSERVATION DISTRICT STUDY CITY OF LONDON, ONTARIO Personnel GOLDER ASSOCIATES Project Director Christopher Andreae, Ph.D, CAHP, Associate, Senior Built Heritage Specialist Project Manager David Waverman, B.L.A., OALA, AALA, CSLA, CAHP, Senior Landscape Architect Planner Marcus Letourneau, Ph.D., MCIP, RPP, CAHP, Senior Cultural Heritage Specialist Project Coordinator Michael Greguol, M.A., Junior Cultural Heritage Specialist Project Coordinator Rebecca Robinson, M.L. Arch, B.Sc., OALA Associate, Landscape Designer Project Coordinator Kyle Gonyou, M.PL., Junior Cultural Heritage Specialist GSP GROUP Planner Glenn Scheels, MCIP, RPP, Prinicipal, Planner Planner Andrew Morgan, B. ES, Planner TAUSKY HERITAGE CONSULTANTS Historian Nancy Tausky,