Basement renovations in Port Hope

The Port Hope basement already behind us

Dexter Baksh hired us to renovate his basement in Port Hope, and his words are quoted below. It is one of two places where we have completed basement renovations, the other being Lindsay. We keep project photos private by choice, but we are happy to describe how that job ran when we meet.

Between us we have more than 20 years of combined trade experience, and the company is insured and covered by WSIB. On a Port Hope job that matters, because the same crew handles framing, finishing and the extra paperwork this town asks for.

Soil, excavation and the Port Hope Area Initiative

The Port Hope Area Initiative is the federal cleanup of historic low-level radioactive waste in Port Hope and Clarington. Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (CNL) says the Port Hope Project covers about 1.2 million cubic metres of waste, and that its property testing includes a radiological survey of about 5,700 properties in urban Port Hope plus a small number in the rural area, at no cost to owners. Most properties will not need a cleanup, and those owners receive a Compliance Letter.

Separately, CNL has run a Construction Monitoring Program since the 1980s. Its fact sheet, linked from the Municipality's building permits page, says projects that need a building permit are referred to CNL automatically, and that monitoring may also be required for renovations that generate waste building materials. The Municipality strongly encourages enrolment for properties in the Urban Area, Ward 1. If contaminated material is found, CNL removes it at no cost to the owner. The steps are:

• The owner applies for a permit or contacts CNL directly
• CNL carries out a site investigation and preliminary radiological monitoring
• CNL tells the owner or the building office whether more monitoring is needed
• If needed, CNL monitors the work and removes any historic waste to licensed storage

What that means under your house

A basement finish inside the walls rarely disturbs soil, although tearing out old finishes can still bring CNL in, as noted above. Lowering a floor, cutting an egress window well, adding a walkout or repairing a sewer lateral does. Before any digging, we ask whether the property already has a Compliance Letter. CNL's consent form treats an issued letter as meaning no monitoring is required. If you are unsure, CNL issues a Radiological Status Letter summarizing the property's file, and says requests take up to six business days. We build that time into the schedule rather than guess.

Two heritage districts and 200 designated properties

Port Hope's housing is old. In the 2021 census, about 38% of the municipality's occupied homes were built in 1960 or earlier and close to two thirds before 1981. The Municipality says it has over 200 designated properties and two heritage conservation districts: Walton Street, and John, Ontario and Queen Street.

The heritage permits page is reassuring for basement plans. Interior changes normally do not need Heritage Approval unless a property's own designation by-law protects interior features. New windows, doors and brickwork are exterior work, though, and building permits are not issued for designated properties until Heritage Approval is in place. The Heritage Advisory Committee meets on the third Monday of the month, so a new egress window in a district is planned with that calendar in mind. Our egress window guide explains the sizing rules.

The Ganaraska River and your floor drain

Ganaraska Conservation's flood page calls the March 1980 flood, when the Ganaraska River overflowed after heavy rain on a dense snowpack, the greatest in recent memory for the Port Hope area. It also notes that high Lake Ontario levels and storm surges can flood the lakeshore. We check a property's hazard mapping through the property search before planning a walkout or a basement unit.

Two notes from the Municipality's water and sewer page apply below grade. The homeowner owns the service lines from the house to the property line. During sanitary sewer flushing, residents are asked to keep floor drains and plumbing traps filled with water to limit blowback. A finished basement should keep its floor drain reachable, not buried under flooring.

Permit card, plumbing and County inspections

Building Services reviews the application along with a planning review, and the permit card it issues is meant to be posted in a front window, where it doubles as your inspection checklist. The Building Services FAQ gives a legislated timeline of 10 business days for a house renovation where units are not stacked, once the application is complete. Inspections need 24 hours' notice and are carried out within 48 hours. The occupancy inspection closes the file.

The Municipality's plumbing permits page names finishing plumbing in a basement or room as permit work. The Municipality issues the permit, but Northumberland County performs plumbing inspections, booked with the County using the permit number. We handle both sides.

Two units, three bedrooms, one driveway

Port Hope's ARU page summarizes Zoning By-law 20/2010. Lots with a detached, semi-detached or street townhouse dwelling can have up to two additional residential units. Each unit can have at most three bedrooms, and a unit in the basement is allowed to fill it. If the unit's entrance is in an interior side yard, the entrance and stairs must be at least 1.2 metres from the side lot line. A lot with fewer than two parking spaces needs one more for the first unit. Lots with two or more need none for the first, and lots with three or more need none for the second.

The process starts with a planning review form and site plan, which the Municipality says can take up to 10 business days. Rural lots add conditions: countryside lots under 0.4 hectares cannot have a unit, and a new well needs a hydrogeological study. Our suite guide covers the Building Code items.

Ward 1 is the urban area, the former Town of Port Hope. Ward 2 is the rural area, set by the boundaries of the former Township of Hope. The Official Plan names the hamlets of Garden Hill, Canton, Osaca, Campbellcroft, Welcome and Elizabethville. Budgets are set out on our pricing page and in the cost guide.