Heritage Conservation in Streetsville, Mississauga

At the meeting of General Committee at the City of Mississauga on December 4, a majority of City of Mississauga Councillors voted to approve the adoption of the Streetsville Heritage Conservation District plan.

On behalf of the Board of Directors and staff at Heritage Mississauga, we wish to thank City of Mississauga Councillors for their vision and support to bring the new HCD one step closer to a reality. It has been a long time coming. Although consultants were hired to undertake the formal study in 2023, the HCD has been over a decade in the making. Heritage Mississauga has taken part in multiple community sessions, stakeholder meetings, discussions with Councillors, Heritage Planning staff, the Streetsville BIA and the Streetsville Historical Society over many years, and while we know that there is not unanimous support for the HCD proposal, it is clear in our community discussions that a majority of the community do support the creation of the HCD.

Streetsville HCD Study Area

Streetsville is one of the founding villages of the City of Mississauga and is home to the largest collection of heritage buildings in our city. An HCD is not about stopping change or development, but rather about managing future growth to meet the needs of current and future residents, and to also responsibly conserve the combined heritage that has made Streetsville such a significant and unique part of Mississauga. As Ward 11 Councillor Brad Butt commented, it is about viewing future development through a heritage lens. Again, we know that an HCD is not about stopping development, nor would we want to freeze time or longingly look romantically to Streetsville’s past to shape decision making on future growth. We know and expect change and growth to come, but the HCD give city planners tools to help manage and direct growth appropriate for the treasured and historic core of Streetsville.

We also note that many of the recent and new developments that are in close proximity to Streetsville also celebrate the charm and character of Streetsville in regard to attracting new residents and prospective buyers/renters, and we could not agree more. Streetsville showcases how heritage conservation can bolster and support community development and growth, finding commonalities between new residential growth and heritage conservation that continue to make Streetsville and the surrounding area a desirable place to live, work and play.

Our past experiences with the two other Heritage Conservation Districts in our city (Meadowvale Village and Old Port Credit Village) show that they do work, and we should collectively celebrate the intrinsic values that HCDs add to our city, helping to make Mississauga a vibrant, culturally endowed, multifaceted and dynamic place to call home – a city that can both embrace our heritage while at the same time keeping our collective gaze on future growth and new opportunities. Or, to put it succinctly and to reinforce the motto on our City’s official coat-of-arms: “Pride in Our Past, Faith in Our Future.”

The Streetsville HCD also provides depth and meaning beyond Streetsville itself: Mississauga’s unique stories, heritage and the collective experiences that have shaped our city are important, and they should be conserved and celebrated where possible. We can and should celebrate who and what we are and how we came to be, while at the same time allowing that past to provide perspectives on future growth.

Heritage Mississauga extends our sincere thanks to Councillor Brad Butt, former Councillor George Carlson, the Heritage Planning team at the City of Mississauga, the Heritage Advisory Committee, the Streetsville BIA, and the consultants for guiding the development of the Heritage Conservation District Plan for Streetsville.

To learn more about the plan and perhaps more importantly, to learn what it means and what it does not mean, please visit: https://yoursay.mississauga.ca/streetsville