Rehabilitation of Historic Places
Canadian heritage buildings are victims of the same weather
conditions and natural forces as their residents. As
time passes, some sites need to be attended to in order to conserve
their heritage value. Often, a mix of environmental factors
and human interaction causes sites to deteriorate. Since
Canada's historic places are integral to Canadian culture and
identity, efforts are consistently made to conserve heritage
through rehabilitation. It is for this reason that the
Standards and Guidelines for the Conservation of Historic Places in
Canada is consulted for practical conservation advice.
Rehabilitation, a conservation method that makes contemporary use
of historic places through repair, carefully protects vital aspects
of the structure. Throughout Canada, there have been numerous
large rehabilitation projects, though most are done on a smaller
scale. 
Located in Montréal, Quebec, Maison Shaughnessy is a large mansion built in
the Second Empire style that had lost much of its integrity.
Because of its style, the rehabilitation process paid close
attention to its architectural features. Though parts of the
metal roof cresting on were missing, there was enough physical
evidence to recreate it. And since overall detailing and form
of the roof was still evident, it was possible to rehabilitate its
cresting to unify the buildings aesthetics.
When rehabilitating a historic place it is important to
understand the cause of damage. For example, the North Pacific Cannery NHS in Port Edward,
British Columbia was greatly affected by its exposure to marine
conditions. Situated on a narrow strip by the mountains at
the mouth of the Skeena River, this historic place is open to
natural elements. In particular, since most of the site's
buildings are supported on piers in the water, the North Pacific
Cannery NHS structures are exposed on all sides. The wooden
siding was damaged beyond repair and
required replacement. In rehabilitation projects,
replacements are done "in kind" which means they are made of the
same material and mimic the style of the original features.
In keeping with the heritage value of the site and stylistic
aspects of the era in which it was constructed, rehabilitated
heritage places may include reproduced features. The
Standards and Guidelines manual provides clear instruction about
appropriate additions and alterations for rehabilitation
projects.
The Rideau Canal NHS is a 200 km artificial
waterway in Eastern Ontario built in the 19th century.
Because its heritage value includes the survival of a high number
of its original canal structures, it is important to retain as much
of the canal's authenticity as possible. The locks,
blockhouses, dams, weirs, and
lockmasters' houses all contain
original elements which must be conserved. A rehabilitation
project was necessary for the Rideau Canal NHS because portions of
the canal's stone walls and lock gates were deteriorated beyond
repair. Using physical evidence from the existing walls and
gates, replicas of the original stone blocks and wooden members
replaced the damaged features. When rehabilitating historic
places such as this, it is important to take the original form and
detail into account to conserve character-defining elements of the
site.
Nova Scotia's Truro Post Office NHS underwent an extensive
rehabilitation project to replace missing historic features.
Based on physical and documented evidence, necessary parts of the
post office's roof were redone. As a two-and-a-half storey
structure, Truro Post Office NHS is valued as an intact example of
Thomas Fuller's architecture. Heritage conservation
specialists were careful to restore the Gothic and Romanesque
elements of the
original design while replacing
features "in kind". Occasionally, rehabilitation consists of
slight design alterations that are compatible yet distinctive in
form, material, era, and character of the building. However,
in the case of Truro Post Office NHS, character-defining elements
focus heavily on Fuller's original design, thus removing the option
of alterations. Although in some cases the Standards and Guidelines
manual approves modern alterations, this would not be an
appropriate rehabilitation method for the Truro Post Office
NHS.
There are other considerations that may need to be taken into
account during the process of rehabilitation. For example,
health, safety, accessibility, energy efficiency, and environmental
issues can play an important role. Though these
considerations are not a necessary part of the process, these
factors frequently affect rehabilitation. Conservation and
rehabilitation is based on the individual needs of each historic
place - no two are the same. Rehabilitation strives to
bring heritage sites into the modern world without damaging any
historic elements. Adaptive reuse of Canadian historic places
brings new life to valuable heritage buildings in ways that extend
the site's longevity and utilization.