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Second, in all revitalization efforts the City and Down-
town BIA have emphasized preserving the heritage
main street character of Wellington Avenue and Yale
Road East. The Downtown Façade Improvement Pro-
gram of the 1990s is one of the success stories of this
approach and has led to some significant changes to
the Wellington Avenue store fronts and streetscape,
attracting the interest of film and TV production com-
panies. As main street improvements continue, pre-
serving the traditional downtown’s character will re-
main a focus of downtown revitalization.
The effort of preserving First Nations history has in-
tensified in the past decades, primarily through im-
proved documentation of the oral history and archae-
ological research. The Province has enacted strong
legislation and regulations to protect the integrity of
First Nations artifacts, and the City will continue to
work with all stakeholders to facilitate due process.
OBJECTIVES
1. Promote public awareness, education, and sup-
port for the City’s heritage and the protection of
archaeological resources.
2. Reinforce the historic character of the downtown
commercial core.
POLICIES
1. Increase public awareness of, and access to,
heritage resources through the services and pro-
grams of the Chilliwack Museum.
2. In accordance with the City’s
Heritage Designa-
tion Policy,
c
ontinue to designate heritage sites
that are volunteered by the concerned property
owners, and
celebrate heritage designations as
public events to enhance public awareness.
3. Where applicable, consider heritage impact in
the development approval process and the neigh-
bourhood planning framework; and where con-
flict occurs, focus on finding a compatible and
economically viable solution through land use
and site/building design.
4. Continue to support the Chilliwack Museum and
Archives in innovations and community initiatives
regarding heritage and archaeological resource
interpretation, conservation, promotion and cel-
ebration.
5. Protect archaeological resources in accordance
with the Heritage Conservation Act and the pro-
vincial permit system
6. Preserve the main street character of the Five
Corners area through development
guidelines
and a design review process, with a special focus
on architectural and site designs that are sympa-
thetic with the area’s heritage character. (see De-
velopment Permit Area 4 - Downtown Form and
Character development guidelines)
PUBLIC ART
The City has received valuable input from the com-
munity on the significance of public art to healthy
community development. As the downtown revitaliz-
es, and public gathering places become a centre stage
for expression, public art becomes an important part
of our urban culture. The City encourages develop-
ments in community centres and other strategic loca-
tions to incorporate public art and enrich our urban
landscape. To ensure good decisions on public art
proposals from private initiatives, a public art policy is
indispensable. Such a policy will complement other
cultural activities and programs in the City to ensure
a thriving local culture and a high quality of life that
befits an emerging metropolitan area.
OBJECTIVE
Recognize public art as part of healthy community de-
velopment and everyday experience.
Goal 5 - Build Healthy Attractive Communities