The ACO Port Hope Annual Meeting took place on May 7th, 2026 in the Sculthorpe Room of the Capitol Theatre.
The evening began with the business portion of the meeting. Katherine McHarg and Susan Layard presented the Chairs’ Report in which the year’s events and accomplishments were described. Highlights included the two live auctions, the Book Talks, the delightful Summer Social and magnificent Holiday Party, and the approval of $257,000 in grants towards the restoration of heritage properties in Port Hope.
Our Treasurer, Brenda Willows, then outlined the 2025 Financial Statements and read the list of our new Board members. The Financial Statements and the list of ACO Port Hope Board members may be found on our website, see the Reports section here.
The business portion of the meeting concluded with the presentation of ACO Port Hope’s two awards: The Bluestone Award for community service and the Marion Garland Award for the completion of important restoration work on the town’s heritage buildings. Bluestone Awards were given to Laura Antonik for her stunning work on the ACO Port Hope website and to Blaise Gaetz for his tireless efforts on the ACO Live Auction, ACO House Tours and other ACO projects. The Marion Garland Award was given to David Watson for the superb restoration of his buildings at 99 and 101 Walton Street.
The second part of the meeting was devoted to a presentation by Susan Layard on the important structural changes to improve financial sustainability that will be coming to the province-wide Architectural Conservancy of Ontario corporation (ACO Inc.) as a result of decisions made by the ACO Inc. Board of Directors on April 25th, 2026.
Under the new ACO Inc. structure, ACO branches will either become affiliates, operating as independent not-for-profit organizations assuming responsibility for their own financial and legislative obligations while remaining affiliated to ACO Inc. through a Memorandum of Understanding, or become associates, operating without the administrative burden of financial management by giving up their branch bank accounts to ACO Inc.’s provincial office.
This structural change is intended to improve ACO Inc.’s financial viability and reduce administrative costs. It will allow branches requiring greater local flexibility and independence to be more self-reliant, while providing greater support to branches requiring assistance with financial matters.
From now until the end of 2026, ACO Port Hope expects to be transitioning from being a branch within ACO Inc. to becoming an independent ACO affiliate of ACO Inc. We also expect to be coordinating with the Port Hope Heritage Foundation (PHHF), which is already an established not-for-profit corporation with similar purposes to those of ACO Inc.
For ACO Port Hope members, programming, advocacy, events, and heritage activities in Port Hope will continue as usual with no anticipated disruption. All ACO Port Hope memberships will be honoured through their existing renewal dates. Upon renewal, members will receive a complimentary membership in the new organization. Moreover, with improved financial sustainability, ACO Inc.’s provincial advocacy is expected to continue and grow.
The presentation was well received by ACO Port Hope members, and there were just a few questions afterwards. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us at info@acoporthope.ca.
The Annual Meeting was concluded by our new Chair, Brian Buttery, who thanked the outgoing chairs and invited everyone to stay for refreshments and informal discussion.