Town of Markham

Ontario

2000 Prince of Wales Prize

Nominated by the Ward 1 (South) Thornhill Residents Association, the Town of Markham was cited for its heritage policies, bylaws and programs developed for a period of more than twenty-five years. Drawing on the strength of community volunteers and a committed professional heritage planning unit, Markham achieved remarkable results in a climate of huge pressures from developers and builders. The Heritage Canada Awards Jury commended Markham for the strength of its heritage designation program, including not only a large number of individual properties, but also three significant heritage districts. Although Ms. Anne West of Halifax, Nova Scotia, has been active in a variety of heritage projects over the years, she was honoured especially for her tireless efforts to raise funds for the restoration of St. George’s Anglican Church in Halifax. Severely damaged by an arson fire in 1994, St. George’s – also know as the Round Church, for its central plan – barely survived the fire. Ms. West immediately threw her energies and talents into the project to restore the building, raising more than $1.4 million and providing leadership for the daunting project.