May 14: Notice of Intention to pass a By-law to Designate

Take Notice that the Council of The Corporation of the City of Kingston intends to pass a By-Law under Section 29 of the Ontario Heritage Act, R.S.O. 1990, Chapter 0.18, to designate the following lands to be of cultural heritage value and interest:

525 King Street West (Part Lot 4, North Side King Street, Plan 54, Kingston City; Part Block 191, Plan 54, Kingston City, Part 1 on Reference Plan 13R-4173; City of Kingston, County of Frontenac), known as the Deputy Warden’s House/ Isabel Macneill House;

• The subject property is situated on the northeast corner of the intersection of King Street West and Sir John A. Macdonald Boulevard, in the Portsmouth area of the City of Kingston. The approximately 1.35-hectare parcel contains a two-and-a-half storey Classical Revival style limestone residence, constructed in 1911, known as both the Deputy Warden’s House and the Isabel Macneill House, which is included as part of the Kingston Penitentiary’s National Historic Site of Canada recognition.
  
  The subject property includes a representative and relatively rare example of a Classical Revival style dwelling from the early 20th century. The former Deputy Warden’s House is a restrained version of traditional classical motifs and materials. The structure is a well-proportioned and very simplified version of early 20th century domestic design inspired by classical precedents. Largely devoid of decorative elements, the house achieves its impact from the balanced treatment of its main façade, its sense of scale, and the handling of materials (locally quarried limestone).
  
  The property is associated with the operational practices and history of Kingston Penitentiary and the legacy of Commander Isabel Macneill. The dwelling was constructed for the Deputy Warden of Kingston Penitentiary (Daniel O’Leary) in 1909 (completed and occupied by 1911). At the time of construction, it was expected that senior officers would be provided living quarters within the institution’s precinct, as it was essential that both the Warden and Deputy Warden be available to supervise staff and to deal with emergency situations.
  
  The building was used as a home for the Deputy Warden, and later Warden, until 1967. It was renovated in 1990 to be used as a transitional house, part of a pre-release program for women offenders, and named in honour of Commander Isabel Macneill.
  
  Commander Isabel Janet Macneill (1908-1990) was amongst the first women to ascend to leadership positions traditionally appointed to men in Canada’s correctional system. She developed programs and hired specialized staff to promote the rehabilitation of female inmates, instead of just facilitating their incarceration. During the Second World War, Macneill was appointed as the first female commanding officer of a naval ship in the British Commonwealth. She was promoted to Commander and named as an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in 1944. After the War, Macneill was appointed as superintendent of the Ontario Training School for Girls, where she transformed the school from what was essentially a jail for children to a treatment facility. In 1960, she was appointed as the first female Superintendent of the Federal Prison for Women, where she introduced a “team approach” involving nurses, social workers, psychologists and psychiatrists as well as several new initiatives such as pre-release programs, and an increase in academic and vocational courses, to promote inmate rehabilitation. Commander Macneill was named as an Officer of the Order of Canada in 1971.
  
  The contextual value of this property is exemplified through its role as an important element in the cultural heritage landscape of prisons and ‘Penitentiary Lands’ within Kingston. The former Deputy Warden’s House is historically linked to these surroundings and is critically important in maintaining and supporting the historic institutional character of this area. The land on which the former Deputy Warden’s House is located was once part of a larger prison landscape which consisted of multiple such properties from Lake Ontario to Bath Road. While many of these lands have been subdivided, remnants of this landscape persist including the former Correctional Service of Canada prison buildings located at Rodden Park, the water tower and farmhouse located on the West Campus of Queen’s University, the former Prison for Women building, the Correctional Staff College at 443 Union Street, the Warden’s House/Cedarhedge and Kingston Penitentiary itself, all of which have been identified as having cultural heritage value. In addition to the prison buildings, surviving elements of the cultural heritage landscape also include the remaining portions of the perimeter walls, and the terraced lawn area facing King Street West known as the West Yard, the government-designed light posts, and the stone and iron fences along King Street West.
  
  The federal penitentiary system has been a dominant part of Kingston’s socio-economic history. Kingston has served as the focus of the federal penitentiary system in Ontario from its inception. The former Deputy Warden’s House has significant contextual value due to its connection to the larger penal campus, which defines, maintains and supports the character of the area as well as the growth of King Street, Portsmouth Village and the City of Kingston. It is physically and visually linked to its surroundings and is a landmark of national significance.
  
  Together with the North Lodge, guard towers and the former Warden’s House, the Deputy Warden’s House maintains strong visual and historical links to its immediate surroundings as part of the public facing portion of the penitentiary facility. Functionally, the Deputy Warden’s House served as one of the principle administrative hubs for the KP precinct.
  
  The former Deputy Warden’s House is a landmark along King Street West because of its decorative iron fence on a stone base and gate posts, prominent corner location and its imposing early 20th century limestone construction. It has a commanding presence when travelling along King Street West and, together with KP and former Warden’s House as well as the former Prison for Women facility and stone water tower to the north, contributes to the penitentiary campus character of the area.
  
  The bold, symmetrical massing and limestone construction of the former dwelling, together with the guard towers, fences and wall, make a strong statement about the austere nature of the institution, which dominates this portion of King Street West and the intersection with Sir John A. Macdonald Boulevard.
  
  Heritage attributes include the two-and-a-half storey limestone dwelling with truncated hipped roof and stone chimneys, limestone porch with stone pillars, limestone and iron fence with gate posts and pebbled concrete lamp post.

Additional information, including a full description of the reasons for designation is available upon request from Ryan Leary, Senior Heritage Planner, Heritage Services at 613-546-4291, extension 3233, or at RLeary@CityofKingston.ca during regular business hours, or by visiting the Development and Services Hub at CityofKingston.ca/DASH.

Any notice of objection to this notice of intention to designate the property, setting out the reason for objection and all relevant facts, must be served upon the City Clerk within 30 days of the first publication of this notice.

Dated at the City of Kingston 

This 14th day of May, 2026 

Janet Jaynes, City Clerk

City of Kingston