As part of the Toronto Heritage Survey, the City is currently undertaking a Cultural Heritage Resource Assessment (CHRA) for the Little Jamaica/Oakwood Vaughan study area, shown in the map below.
CHRAs identify places of cultural heritage value within a study area. For more information about CHRAs, please visit the Toronto Heritage Survey page. The Little Jamaica/Oakwood Vaughan CHRA is taking place alongside the Little Jamaica/Oakwood Vaughan Planning Framework Study.
Heritage Planning has engaged a consultant team, including ERA Architects and Black Urbanism Toronto, to produce the CHRA. The CHRA will be informed by community engagement.
The Little Jamaica/Oakwood Vaughan CHRA is a part of broader City actions to support and celebrate Little Jamaica. In the fall of 2020, City Council called on City staff to support the Black-owned and operated businesses and preserve the cultural heritage of Little Jamaica, including a specific request to create a Cultural District for the area. In 2021, Council further requested that City Planning conduct a cultural heritage resource assessment of the area.
As a result of those requests, Jay Pitter Placemaking was contracted to produce:
The Little Jamaica Cultural District Plan included engagement and research on cultural heritage and was understood to be a pre-cursor to a CHRA. This CHRA has been integrated into the Little Jamaica/Oakwood Vaughan Planning Study to maximize existing community engagement, and to inform the planning study with a rich understanding of the area’s history.
Building on previous surveys and community studies, the Little Jamaica/Oakwood Vaughan CHRA begins by establishing an understanding of the area’s historic evolution. This work supports the identification of properties, both buildings and landscapes, that are important to communities and have potential cultural heritage value under the Ontario Heritage Act. The results of the CHRA will shape policy development related to the conservation of cultural heritage resources and will more broadly influence the development of the related planning framework.
To understand the Study Area through storytelling and living history, the project team conducted a Community Study Gathering event within the community on December 7, 2025.
Community Story Gathering Summary (Coming Soon)
Community engagement is essential to the CHRA and planning study process in Little Jamaica and Oakwood Vaughan. Anyone with knowledge, memories, and lived experience of this area can contribute via the Interactive Mapping Activity.