Heritage Registry

Heritage Planning Overview

Our historic places, which include buildings, landscapes, natural features, and more are crucial to understanding and appreciating our community. Through heritage planning initiatives, we can identify these important places and ensure their conservation and protection.

The Province of BC defines heritage planning and conservation as “the management of a community's past for future generations and the process of deciding how to manage that inheritance.” The key legislation that guides the British Columbia government’s actions related to heritage planning and conservation is the Heritage Conservation Act. The Act exists to encourage and facilitate the protection and conservation of heritage property in British Columbia.

The key legislation that guides Local Government actions relating to heritage conservation is the Local Government Act – Part 27. The LGA clarifies and provides the authority to identify and protect those historic sites and structures valued by the community:

The LGA states that Local Government may, by bylaw, designate real property in whole or in part if the local government considers that:

The property has heritage value or heritage character, or
Designation of the property is necessary or desirable for the conservation of a protected heritage property.

For more information on Heritage Planning in the Province of BC, see here.

Community Heritage Register

A Community Heritage Register (CHR) is a planning tool used by communities interested in integrating heritage conservation activities into other land use planning processes. The LGA sets out criteria for establishing a CHR.

The Register is an official list of historic places, specific to a community, which have been identified by the local government as having heritage value or heritage character.

The Register enables the local government and community to understand and identify the significance of its historic places, to monitor heritage properties for proposed changes, and to integrate heritage conservation activities into local government land use planning processes.

The creation of a CHR ensures the inclusion of a community's historic places on the British Columbia Register of Historic Places, the official provincial listing of historic places that have been formally recognized for their heritage value by the province or local government.

The establishment of a CHR requires a resolution of Council. In 2006 Terrace City Council resolved to establish a CHR for the City of Terrace, with 9 sites identified for inclusion. See a copy of Resolution #054 – 2006 here.

Statements of Significance

An SOS is a summary of the heritage resource that briefly explains what the historic place is and why it is important. Typically an SOS is composed of three key sections:

Description of Historic Place – This section explains what the place consists of in physical terms, where it is located, and what are its physical limits.
Description of Heritage Value – This section explains why the place is of value to the community, province, territory, or nation.
Description of Character defining Elements – This section sets out the key features that must be conserved in order for the site/place to continue to have value.

The City of Terrace CHR is an ongoing initiative. Additional heritage resources may be recognized and included the register from time to time. If you know of a historic place in our city that you think is worth adding to the Terrace CHR, please contact dblock@terrace.ca.