Category: Sandy Aumonier

Municipal Historic Resource designation refresher series: character-defining elements

Municipal Historic Resource designation refresher series: character-defining elements

Jared

Editor’s note: Welcome to the fifth post in a series of blog posts developed with municipalities in mind who either have or are considering undertaking Municipal Historic Resource designation. In this post, we will continue to discuss Statements of Significance as the primary tool for summarizing the significance of designated historic places. You can read the previous post here.

For more information, please review the “Creating a Future” manuals available here or contact Rebecca Goodenough, Manager, Historic Places Research and Designation at rebecca.goodenough@gov.ab.ca or 780-431-2309.

Written by: Dorothy Field, Heritage Survey Coordinator, Sandy Aumonier, Heritage Conservation Adviser and Allan Rowe, Historic Places Research Officer, Historic Resources Management Branch

As previously mentioned, a Statement of Significance (SOS) is a one- to two-page summary document written as a clear, concise and brief narrative of a historic resource. It is written for a broad audience that is not familiar with the resource. The SOS has three sections: description of historic place, heritage values and character-defining elements.

An SOS is central to understanding a resource and any of its elements that might be protected and why.

If a historic resource is designated, the SOS will thereafter be an important planning and property management tool and essential for developing a conservation plan for ongoing management of the resource.

Read more →

Municipal Historic Resource designation refresher series: heritage value

Municipal Historic Resource designation refresher series: heritage value

Jared

Editor’s note: Welcome to the fourth post in a series of blog posts developed with municipalities in mind who either have or are considering undertaking Municipal Historic Resource designation. In this post, we will continue to discuss Statements of Significance as the primary tool for summarizing the significance of designated historic places. You can read the previous post here.

For more information, please review the “Creating a Future” manuals available here or contact Rebecca Goodenough, Manager, Historic Places Research and Designation at rebecca.goodenough@gov.ab.ca or 780-431-2309.

Written by: Dorothy Field, Heritage Survey Coordinator, Sandy Aumonier, Heritage Conservation Adviser and Allan Rowe, Historic Places Research Officer, Historic Resources Management Branch

As previously mentioned, a Statement of Significance (SOS) is a one- to two-page summary document written as a clear, concise and brief narrative of a historic resource. It is written for a broad audience that is not familiar with the resource. The SOS has three sections: description of historic place, heritage values and character-defining elements.

An SOS is central to understanding a resource and any of its elements that might be protected and why.

If a historic resource is designated, the SOS will thereafter be an important planning and property management tool and essential for developing a conservation plan for ongoing management of the resource.

Read more →

Municipal Historic Resource designation refresher series: determining significance

Municipal Historic Resource designation refresher series: determining significance

Jared

Editor’s note: Welcome to the second post in a series of blog posts developed with municipalities in mind who either have or are considering undertaking Municipal Historic Resource designation. In this post, we will be discussing how to determine if a historic place is eligible for designation.You can read the first post here.

For more information, please review the “Creating a Future” manuals available here or contact Rebecca Goodenough, Manager, Historic Places Research and Designation at rebecca.goodenough@gov.ab.ca or 780-431-2309.

Written by: Dorothy Field, Heritage Survey Program Coordinator, Sandy Aumonier, Heritage Conservation Adviser and Allan Rowe, Historic Places Research Officer.

Determining significance

Typically, most folks agree that preserving significant historic resources in our province is important. While it is relatively easy to identify the ‘old’ stuff, how do you go about determining which historic resources are significant and should be considered for protection?

In order to be considered for protection as a Municipal Historic Resource (MHR), a site needs to:

  • be an eligible resource type
  • possess historical significance
  • have sufficient material integrity

If a site meets all three of these of these criteria, it can be considered for MHR designation.

Read more →

Meet our new Conservation Adviser

Michael

Sandy’s Been Everywhere, man …

Sandy hard at work
Sandy hard at work

Hi, I’m Sandy I am the new Heritage Conservation Adviser in the Historic Places Stewardship Section. While new to Alberta’s Ministry of Culture, the field of Cultural Resource Management is not new to me.

I have worked for the City of Ottawa as a heritage planner; for the Heritage Canada Foundation as Medicine Hat’s Main Street Coordinator; was the Built Heritage Project Officer for Jasper National Park; and; the Parks Canada National Historic Sites Cost-Sharing Coordinator for Alberta and British Columbia. I was most recently a heritage resources and community planner with the Parks Canada Agency. Amongst my duties in that position I was the Federal Heritage Building Review Office Coordinator all of Western and Northern Canada.

My work with Parks Canada saw me working in massively diverse geographical areas from Waterton Lakes National Park in the far south west corner of the province to Sheep Creek Warden’s Station located in the middle of Ivvavik National Park in the far north and, from Riding Mountain National Park in Manitoba right across the prairies through the Rocky Mountain National Parks to Vancouver Island. The heritage buildings and properties that I was dealing with included everything from small wardens’ cabins in the remote back country of the Rocky Mountains National Parks; privately and publicly owned residential, commercial and institutional heritage buildings in national parks and national park communities, and; buildings and structures located at national historic sites. The variety and types of heritage buildings was endless and, when combined with their specific geographic locations, the experiences were all highly memorable.

My education has provided me with an understanding of historic place conservation and management. I hold a Bachelor of Arts Degree, in Canadian History and Urban and Regional Geography, from the University of Victoria; a Masters of Environmental Design in Urban and Regional Planning from the University of Calgary where I specialized in heritage planning, and; a Masters of Arts in Conservation Studies (Historic Buildings) from the Institute of Advanced Architectural Studies, the University of York, England.

You will find me to be a very personable person who is highly supportive of colleagues and who enjoys a team-based collaborative work environment. I am truly excited and absolutely thrilled about working as a Heritage Conservation Adviser and look forward to meeting new colleagues, and getting “out in the field” with the owners of designated properties.

Written by: Sandy Aumonier, Heritage Conservation Adviser.