Humber/Ontario Real Estate Course 4 Exam Practice

What is a primary function of the Ontario Heritage Act?

1. Enforce urban planning regulations

2. Preserve areas of cultural importance

3. Register archaeological findings

4. Prevent demolition of designated properties

5. Regulate new construction approvals

6. Control restoration funding

The correct answer is: Prevent demolition of designated properties

The primary function of the Ontario Heritage Act is to prevent the demolition of designated properties. This legislation is fundamentally aimed at preserving and protecting properties that are deemed to have significant historical, architectural, or cultural value. By preventing demolition, the Act ensures that important cultural heritage resources are maintained for future generations and that the historical narrative of an area is preserved. The Act provides mechanisms for municipalities to designate properties of cultural heritage significance and offers guidelines on how such properties should be treated, including the requirement of permits for alterations or demolitions. This protects the integrity of those properties and encourages adaptive reuse rather than demolition. While other functions listed, such as enforcing urban planning regulations, preserving areas of cultural importance, or regulating new construction approvals may have some correlation with heritage conservation, they do not specifically capture the crux of what the Ontario Heritage Act actively seeks to accomplish. Likewise, registering archaeological findings or controlling restoration funding, although relevant to heritage considerations, do not represent primary goals of the Act itself.