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Standards and Guidelines for the Conservation of Historic Places in Canada

Additional Guidelines for Rehabilitation Projects

Within this section:

Land Patterns

Recommended	Not Recommended
PRESERVING land patterns — such as the overall arrangement and interrelationship of forests, meadows, water, topography, built features and other larger landscape components that are important in defining the overall heritage value of the landscape.	Removing or radically changing land patterns that are important in defining the overall heritage value of the landscape.
*Documenting* the overall pattern of the landscape; the size, configuration, proportion and relationship of its larger components, such as forests or fields; and its evolution and condition prior to beginning project work. Documentation also includes identifying the intangible values that contribute to the meaning of land patterns, such as associations from Aboriginal oral traditions.	Undertaking project work that will have an impact on character-defining land patterns without first documenting and understanding their characteristics, relationships, evolution, conditions, intangible values and environmental context.
Evaluating and understanding the local environmental context, including climate, prevailing winds, underlying topography and ecological processes.
*Protecting and maintaining* features that define land patterns by using non-destructive methods in daily, seasonal and cyclical tasks. This could include maintaining the topography, vegetation and structures that comprise the overall pattern of the landscape.	Allowing land patterns to be altered through incompatible development or neglect. Utilizing maintenance methods that destroy or obscure the landscape’s land patterns.
*Retaining* sound land patterns or deteriorated land patterns that can be repaired or rejuvenated.	Replacing land patterns that can be repaired or rejuvenated.
*Repairing and stabilizing* deteriorated land pattern elements by structural reinforcement, weather protection, or correcting unsafe conditions, as required, until any additional work is undertaken. Repairs should be physically and visually compatible.	Removing deteriorated land pattern elements that could be stabilized, repaired and conserved; or using untested consolidants and untrained personnel, thus causing further damage to fragile elements.
*Replacing in kind* extensively deteriorated or missing parts of land patterns where there are surviving prototypes. The new work should match the old in form and detailing.	Replacing an entire land pattern element such as a forest when limited replacement of deteriorated and missing components is appropriate. Using replacement material that does not match the historic land pattern element.
Evaluating the overall condition of the landscape’s land patterns to determine whether more than protection, maintenance and limited repair or replacement in kind are required; i.e., if more extensive repairs to the land pattern elements will be necessary.	Failing to undertake adequate measures to protect the landscape’s land patterns.

Additional Guidelines for Rehabilitation Projects

Recommended	Not Recommended
REHABILITATING land patterns, if an evaluation of their overall condition determines that more than preservation is required.	Failing to evaluate the overall condition of land patterns in order to determine the proper method of conservation.
*Repairing or rejuvenating* extensively deteriorated or missing parts of features that define land patterns by using non-destructive methods and materials, such as regenerating a deteriorated meadow.	Failing to undertake necessary repairs, resulting in the loss of land patterns. Replacing a feature that defines land patterns when repair is possible.
*Replacing* *in kind* an entire feature that defines a land pattern that is too deteriorated to repair, such as replanting a clear-cut woodlot.	Removing a feature that is beyond repair and not replacing it; or replacing it with a new feature that does not respect the land pattern.

Arial view of Neubergthal, Manitoba

The overall arrangement of landscape may best be appreciated from an aerial view or photograph. The land patterns created by the interrelationship of larger landscape components, such as the topography, cultivated fields and human settlements of Neubergthal, Manitoba, are often more obvious from this perspective.

The following REHABILITATION work has been highlighted to indicate that it involves a particularly complex technical or design aspect and should only be considered after the Preservation and Rehabilitation concerns listed above have been addressed.

Recommended	Not Recommended
Designing for the Replacement of Missing Historic Features
Designing and installing new features that respect or acknowledge historic land patterns. It may be a new design that is compatible with the style, era and character of the historic place; or a replica based on physical, documentary and oral evidence.	Introducing new features that are incompatible with the land patterns. Creating a false history because the replacement feature is based on insufficient physical, documentary and oral evidence.
Alterations/Additions for the New Use
Designing new features when required by the new compatible use that do not obscure, damage or destroy character-defining land patterns, such as locating a new road to follow a forest edge.	Adding a new feature that detracts from, damages or destroys character-defining land patterns, such as draining a character-defining wetland to create a residential subdivision. Placing a new feature where it may cause damage to or is intrusive in land patterns, such as cutting a straight utility corridor through a forest with rolling topography. Introducing a new feature that is incompatible in size, scale or design.
Removing non-significant features that detract from or have altered the land patterns.	Removing historic features that are important in defining the land patterns, such as removing hedgerows that define field size.

Additional Guidelines for Restoration Projects

Recommended	Not Recommended
RESTORING land patterns, if an evaluation of their overall condition determines that more than preservation is required; i.e., if repairs to land patterns from the restoration period will be necessary.	Failing to evaluate the overall condition of land patterns in order to determine the proper method of conservation.
*Repairing or rejuvenating* declining features that define land patterns from the restoration period by using non-destructive methods.	Replacing an entire feature from the restoration period that defines land patterns when repair or rejuvenation is possible; or using destructive repair or rejuvenation methods, thus causing further damage to fragile historic materials.
*Replacing in kind* an entire feature from the restoration period that defines land patterns, which is too deteriorated to repair or rejuvenate, such as replanting in kind a historic orchard.	Removing a feature from the restoration period that is beyond repair and not replacing it; or replacing it with a new feature that does not respect land patterns.

The following RESTORATION work has been highlighted to indicate that it involves the removal or alteration of existing land patterns from periods other than the accepted restoration period; and the replacement of missing land patterns from the restoration period with all new materials. This work should only be considered after the Preservation and Restoration concerns listed above have been addressed.

Recommended	Not Recommended
Removing Existing Features from Other Periods
Removing or altering features from other periods that intrude on the historic land patterns.	Failing to remove features from another period, thus confusing the depiction of the landscape’s land patterns during the restoration period.
Documenting features dating from other periods prior to their removal or alteration. If possible, selected examples of these features and materials should be stored to facilitate future research.	Failing to document features from other periods (which results in the loss of a valuable portion of the historic record) prior to removing or altering them.
Recreating Missing Features from the Restoration Period
Recreating a missing feature important to the land patterns that existed during the restoration period, based on physical, documentary and oral evidence.	Constructing a feature that was part of the original design or concept but was never executed, thus creating a false historic appearance; or constructing a land pattern feature that was thought to have existed during the restoration period, but for which there is insufficient documentation.