Luxury Windows & Doors in Unionville

Main Street Unionville and the Heritage District: What to Ask Before Ordering Windows

The Unionville Heritage Conservation District runs along Main Street and was designated in 1997. A 2012 University of Waterloo study counted 262 residential and commercial properties in it. The first thing to establish is whether your address is inside the boundary, because the City's Spring 2025 Heritage District News says renovations, alterations and new buildings anywhere in a district need a Minor or Major Heritage Permit. That wording covers the whole district, so a newer house inside the line should not be assumed to be exempt.

The same newsletter lists window and door replacements among its examples of minor exterior changes, and says minor permits are free. Major permits are for more substantial alterations, additions and new construction, and they carry an application fee. It also warns that work done without approval can bring prosecution and fines under the Ontario Heritage Act, plus a penalty application fee of $600 + HST. A newsletter is only a summary, so confirm how your own project will be treated with Heritage Section staff at heritage@markham.ca. Applications are made online.

Ask three specific questions. How is the building classified under the district plan? City documents refer to Unionville properties by class, and the class affects grant eligibility, so ask what it means for your windows too. Will staff expect the original windows to be repaired rather than replaced? And which materials and profiles would they accept on the street-facing elevations? The Waterloo study recorded that, by 2012, more modern materials were being allowed on non-heritage buildings and additions if they gave a traditional appearance. Treat that as background and ask how it applies today.

Heritage Windows for Unionville's Village Homes: Wood-Clad First, Steel Where It Fits

The district plan describes most of its buildings as dating from the latter half of the nineteenth century, with some Georgian, Regency and early twentieth-century examples, in both wood and brick. On houses of that age, the windows you are matching are commonly wood sash. If the originals survive and can be saved, repair by a heritage window restorer may be the better and cheaper outcome, and it is work we would point you toward rather than sell against.

Where replacement is acceptable, we usually start with wood-clad. The Weather Shield casement window has a wood interior in species including Douglas Fir, Mahogany and White Oak, with an aluminum exterior, and thermal values down to 1.4 W/(m²·K). Weather Shield's double-hung has two operating sashes, tilts in for cleaning and reaches 1.5 W/(m²·K), and its vertical proportions are often the closer match on a village house. The aluminum cladding is the point to raise with City staff, since it is the part seen from the street.

Steel is a narrower fit than its reputation suggests. The Secco OS2 75 thermally broken steel window reaches 1.5 W/(m²·K) with an RC2 security rating, and Forster unico reaches 1.0 W/(m²·K) with RC3. Both have the slim lines people want, and both suit an early twentieth-century building or a clearly modern rear addition. On an 1870s frame house, steel may look out of period from the street, and at about $170 to $280+ per sq ft for Secco it is a costly thing to get wrong. We would rather show you both side by side at the showroom than promise that steel works everywhere.

Window Replacement in Unionville's 1970s and 1980s Subdivisions and Custom Rebuilds

Outside the village core, neighbourhood guides describe detached homes dating mostly from the 1970s and 1980s, mixed with modern rebuilds and some large estates. A house of that age may be on its second set of windows or overdue for one. If the property sits outside the heritage district, the decision is mostly about budget, window count and how much glass you want. Our guide to window replacement in Toronto and the GTA covers the signs that a full replacement is justified, and sometimes it is not. If only the sealed units have failed in otherwise sound frames, replacing the units costs far less.

For a whole-home job, the comparison is usually Schüco against Cortizo. The Schüco AWS 75.SI+ tilt-and-turn window has a 91 mm face width, RC3 security and up to 48 dB of sound reduction, which matters on elevations facing the Highway 7 corridor through Unionville. The Cortizo COR 80 window system has an 80 mm frame depth, thermal values down to 1.1 W/(m²·K) and RC2 security. Cortizo is the honest recommendation when the window count is high and most openings are ordinary in size.

The arithmetic makes the point. On 500 sq ft of windows, our 2026 Toronto guide ranges work out to about $55,000 to $95,000 for Cortizo and $75,000 to $125,000+ for Schüco. That is an illustration and not a quote, since sizes and finishes move the figure. You could also put Schüco on the main elevations and rear glazing and Cortizo everywhere else, which can be a sensible split. If you are building new, our article on new-construction windows and doors in Markham explains what to settle while the drawings can still change, and our luxury windows and doors page for Markham covers the wider city.

Opening Up to the Yard Near Toogood Pond and the Rouge Flood Plain

Toogood Pond began as a mill pond, created by damming Bruce Creek, and the 33.3-hectare park around it is now owned and run by the City of Markham. One neighbourhood guide notes estate homes on premium lots under mature tree canopy near the park, and the small cottages once around the pond have mostly given way to large houses. These are the lots where a big rear opening earns its cost, because there is something worth looking at beyond the glass.

For most large openings we compare two routes. Reynaers MasterPatio sliding doors come in sliding and lift-and-slide versions, reach 1.2 W/(m²·K) and carry an RC2 rating. Schüco ASE 80 reaches 0.87 W/(m²·K) with RC3, and it can be worth the extra cost when the opening is very large and thermal performance matters most. Our page on lift-and-slide doors explains how the mechanism works. Large doors are quoted per opening, typically from the mid five figures for a large opening. If your opening is modest, a standard hinged or sliding patio door may do the job for far less.

Check the site before you draw a wider opening. The district plan notes that properties on the east side of Main Street slope down to the Rouge River flood plain, and a TRCA regulatory framework document lists flood-vulnerable locations on the Rouge in Unionville. Ontario Regulation 41/24 governs development in such hazard areas. If your project includes an addition or structural work on a sloping or creek-side lot, ask the City and the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority early whether a permit applies.

What a York Region Winter Means for Unionville Windows and Doors

Federal climate normals for 1991 to 2020 from the nearby Toronto Buttonville station show about 146 cm of snow a year and average January lows near minus 10°C. Rear elevations that look over open parkland or flood plain get less shelter than a street front, so they deserve the closer look when you choose glass and frames. That cold affects comfort at the glass as much as it affects heating bills, because a cold inner surface is where you feel a draught and where condensation forms.

Good frames help, but they do not solve everything. New airtight windows can make an existing humidity problem more visible, so check ventilation as part of the same project. Low thresholds also need planning here. A barrier-free sill looks excellent in July, but in a snowy backyard it needs exterior drainage and somewhere for the drift to go. We would rather discuss that at the design stage than have you discover it during your first February.

Custom Doors in Unionville, From Main Street Entrances to Statement Pivots

A front door is the most visible single choice on a Unionville house, and it needs the same first question as your windows: is the address inside the heritage district? The City's newsletter lists door replacements alongside windows as an example of a minor change, but a large contemporary pivot on a nineteenth-century facade is unlikely to be the right proposal, and we would say so. A wood-clad or traditionally proportioned door is usually the better conversation to have on Main Street.

A custom rebuild outside the district is a different matter. Opulence is the exclusive Canadian dealer for ROKA, and the ROKA Signature Collection is fully customizable in dimensions, profiles, materials, finishes and hardware, with concealed hinges and RC2 security, in entry and pivot configurations. A statement door like this suits a house designed around it, and the rough opening and structure should be settled with your builder early. If you only need a well-made replacement for a standard opening, a simpler door will serve you just as well and leave more budget for the windows.