March 14, 2019

Dear Mayor Dilkens and Councillors:

RE: Review status of Access and Use Agreement (M58-2011 and future use of the Duff-Bâby Mansion)

We are writing to request an update on the status of Motion 58-2011, as attached. This motion concerns the lease agreement with the Ontario Heritage Trust and the City of Windsor, related to the use and access of the Duff-Bâby Mansion and, in particular, to utilize the Dining Room and Trading Hall for improved historical interpretation.

The group Les Amis Duff-Bâby, established since the early 1990's, is a group of volunteers dedicated to providing information, tours and the promotion of the Duff-Bâby site and building. In the early 1990s, we were the group that lobbied the community, City Council, WACAC (Windsor Architectural Conservation Advisory Committee), as well as provincial and federal representatives to pressure the Ontario Heritage (Foundation) Trust to prepare a Master Plan for the use and development of the building and site. We also argued for the conservation of the building to its earliest appearance (1800 vs. the proposed 1920). In so doing, the OHT spent well over $1 million (rather than the budgeted $350,000.00) on stabilization and conservation, bringing the house back to its original appearance. The Duff-Bâby Mansion is crucial to telling the story of our community, which the Municipality assisted in bringing to the forefront through projects such as the Tecumseh/Brock Monument, The Sandwich Arch, Muir Library, Mackenzie Hall, etc.

An Interpretation Building as well as an access agreement for the Mansion and Interpretation Centre was also prepared and put into place. This 4 year access agreement dated 1997 was between the Ontario Heritage Foundation and the Windsor Public Library Board. The governance of the Museum has changed to the City and the agreement has not been updated or amended and accordingly is stale. The agreement allowed for use of the Interpretation Centre and provided opportunities for public access to the Duff-Bâby Mansion in accordance with the Trust lease agreement with the Ontario Management Board: 6 special event dates, weekend tour dates and 4 school tours (mostly with 30 days' notice). The current local MPPs have been supportive and assisted in the matter of having further/additional access/use of this historic site and building.

Since our founding, we have tried to acquire additional historical interpretation space for the community on the ground floor, specifically the Dining Room and Trading Hall entrance. In its present use and state, it is extremely difficult to interpret these areas properly. More recently, the OHT has vacated a number of