Restoration Register

Heritage restoration contractors in Waterloo and Wellington

Waterloo and Wellington hold the deepest restoration capability in Ontario outside the GTA, and it is not an accident. Elora, Fergus, St. Jacobs and the older parts of Kitchener and Guelph have kept enough stone and brick building stock in continuous use to support a real trade base rather than an occasional one.

The building stock here is dressed limestone and fieldstone in Elora and Fergus, red and buff brick across Kitchener and Waterloo, and a substantial stock of mills and commercial blocks now in adaptive reuse. A general restoration contractor in this region typically runs the whole project: masonry, roof, windows, interior, under a municipal heritage permit and often alongside a conservation consultant. Adaptive reuse is common enough here that many of these firms are experienced at the harder version of the problem, which is meeting the Building Code and accessibility requirements in a designated building without destroying what made it worth designating.

What to ask before you hire

  1. Have you done adaptive reuse in a designated building? Code and accessibility compliance inside a heritage envelope is a specific skill and this region has people who have it.
  2. What share of your work is heritage? In Waterloo and Wellington you can hold out for a firm that does this most of the time.
  3. Who is your mason? In a stone region the mason is usually the difference between a good project and an expensive one.
Grant funding

Kitchener funds 50% to $15,000 for special projects and $5,000 generally. Cambridge funds 50% to $5,000. Guelph's Heritage Redevelopment Grant ended in 2024 and has not been replaced, so Guelph owners should look at provincial and federal programs instead.

Contractors on this page

Also serving this area

Listed in a neighbouring region and covering this one.

Part of

More in the Waterloo & Wellington region

Get quotes for your project

Tell us about the job and we will pass it to up to three listed heritage trades who work in your area. It is free and there is no obligation.

All heritage service pages · Grants by municipality