In May 2010, ERA Architects partnered with urbanMetrics to develop a business strategy for the Ruhl Farmstead and John Willmott Farmhouse, two mid-1800s properties located in Milton, Ontario, a town undergoing rapid change.

The challenge in this project was to develop a conservation strategy of the site’s built and natural heritage while responding to Milton’s growing population and urban development. Any solution would have to make thoughtful use of the buildings and land, enhance the public realm, and be financially viable.

In service of these goals, the report details the site’s historic and planning context; analyzes its natural, cultural, and built heritage value; applies business analytics to a wide range of adaptive reuse scenarios; and finally makes a number of recommendations for how to

• achieve long-term sustainability for the heritage buildings and landscape,
• benefit the community by providing new public parkland, as well as community and commercial programs of real local value, and
• support the entire program financially through strategic adaptive reuse options that involve a collaboration of public and private investment.

As the Town of Milton adopts the proposed business strategy and moves forward, we look forward to seeing its built and natural heritage fabric interwoven with its new urban forms to build thriving new communities.