Richmond Hill Council met on Wednesday, June 24, 2026, for a short meeting that mainly focused on heritage protection and the City’s relationship with the Richmond Hill Public Library.
1. Passed on consent: Most of the agenda
Most items on the agenda were approved without separate discussion. Council adopted the agenda, approved previous meeting minutes from June 10 and June 17, and passed most routine items and bylaws on consent.
The main items pulled for discussion were the heritage designations of two Anglican church properties and the new Richmond Hill Public Library operating agreement.
2. Flashpoint: Should stained glass windows be protected?
The most detailed debate was over two church properties on Yonge Street: St. John the Baptist Anglican Church and St. Mary’s Anglican Church.
David Tang of Miller Thomson LLP spoke on behalf of the Anglican diocese. He said the diocese did not object to the heritage designation of the church properties themselves, but objected to the stained glass windows being listed as protected heritage attributes.
His argument was that the windows are religious expression. If the churches are ever sold or used differently, a future owner may not want to display Christian imagery. The diocese argued that permanently protecting the windows could limit that future choice.
3. Council’s answer: Designate now, discuss changes later
Council supported staff’s recommendation to keep the stained glass windows included in the heritage designation.
Staff told council that heritage designation does not mean nothing can ever change. The Ontario Heritage Act includes a process for future alteration requests, and staff said different conservation options could be considered if an application comes forward later.
Councillor Scott Thompson said council’s role was to assess the heritage value of the properties as they exist today. Councillor Carol Davidson also asked whether the windows could potentially be conserved in another way rather than necessarily staying exactly where they are.
Council approved both heritage designation items.
4. Mayor’s warning: Heritage assets could disappear
Mayor David West strongly supported the designations and used the discussion to criticize provincial changes to heritage rules.
He said municipalities are now under pressure to designate important heritage properties quickly or risk losing protection over them. In his view, the change was meant to help create housing, but will not necessarily do that. Instead, he warned it could lead to important local heritage buildings being lost.
His message was clear: if Richmond Hill does not act now on heritage properties it considers important, the City may lose the ability to protect them later.
5. Library agreement: A quiet but important governance fix
Council also approved a new operating agreement between the City and the Richmond Hill Public Library.
Councillor Davidson said the agreement may look like a small agenda item, but it deals with a complex relationship. The City owns and funds major parts of the library system, while the library must remain independent in its programming, policies, and decisions.
City Manager Darlene Joslin called it one of the most complex agreements she has worked on and said the new version is clearer, more concise, and better defines the partnership between the City and the library.
Mayor West also praised the library as a major community space and said the agreement helps clean up problems from the previous term of council.Bottom line
This was a short meeting, but not an empty one. Council moved quickly through routine business, protected two historic church properties, kept stained glass windows within the heritage designations, and approved a new library agreement meant to balance public funding, accountability, and library independence.