Notice of Intention to Designate 992 Portage Road, Geographic Township of Eldon

Take Notice that the Council of the City of Kawartha Lakes, on August 25, 2026, passed a resolution of intent to designate the following property under Section 29 of the Ontario Heritage Act, R.S.O. 1990, c.18, as a property of cultural heritage value or interest:

992 Portage Road, Geographic Township of Eldon
PT LT 14 S/S NELSON ST AND W/S KING ST PL 106 PT 2 57R10024; CITY OF KAWARTHA LAKES

Statement of Reasons for Designation

Design and Physical Value

992 Portage Road has design and physical value as a representative example of an early twentieth century Gothic Revival church constructed for a Presbyterian congregation in Kawartha Lakes. Built in 1905, the building the building demonstrates key principles of the Gothic Revival style as executed in the early twentieth century where it had evolved into a freer and more eclectic version of the style which, for churches that served dissenting Protestant congregations, tended towards less ornate and simplified adaptions of this style. These architectural features include its steeply pitched gable roof, buttresses, large lancet feature window on the north elevation, and its large entrance tower.

Historical and Associative Value

992 Portage Road has historical and associative value as the former St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church in Kirkfield. The church, which operated from 1905 to 2010 as the local Presbyterian church, has specific historical associations with the significant Scottish Presbyterian population of both Kirkfield itself and of Eldon Township more broadly and yields information regarding the demographic growth and religious affiliations of the village and surrounding township throughout the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries as a major community institution. The property also has historical association with Sir William Mackenzie, the Kirkfield-born railway baron who is funded the construction of the church.

Contextual Value

992 Portage Road has contextual value as a local landmark and as a contributing feature to the historic hamlet landscape of Kirkfield. Originally constructed as St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church and now a local museum and events space, the church is a well-known and recognized community landmark that occupies a prominent location on Portage Road, the community’s primary artery. The church supports and contributes to the historic small-town character of the community separate from the surrounding area, by helping define Portage Road as a main street as part of a collection of late nineteenth and early twentieth century buildings that define the community. It is historically linked to its surroundings as part of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century development of Kirkfield, the primary period of development for the community and the time period from which a large proportion of the community’s buildings date.

Further information respecting the proposed designation is available at the City’s Economic Development Department. Any objection to this designation must be filed within 30 days of September 29, 2026. Objections should be directed to: Cathie Richie, Clerk, City of Kawartha Lakes, P.O. Box 9000, 26 Francis Street, Lindsay, ON K9V 5R8. Objections may be filed electronically at clerks@kawarthalakes.ca.

For more information regarding this property, please refer to its Heritage Evaluation Report.

Any inquiries may be directed to:

Economic Development Officer- Heritage Planning
City of Kawartha Lakes,
180 Kent Street West, Lindsay, ON  K9V 2Y6
(705) 324-9411 ext.1366
eturner@kawarthalakes.ca

The last date for objection is 4:00 p.m. on October 29, 2026.