It might come too late to reimburse Victoria’s big bill to Rogers’ Chocolates, but the province is lobbying to protect municipalities from bearing liability for historic sites.

“Offering financial assistance to municipal governments tasked with protecting nationally-recognized gems like Rogers’ Chocolates will ensure ongoing stewardship of heritage resources at the community level,” wrote B.C. Minister of Tourism, Culture and Arts, Kevin Krueger, in a letter to Jim Prentice, Minister of Environment Canada.

Rogers', at 913 Government St., is a National Historic Site. Unlike a municipal heritage designation, the federal designation doesn’t trigger any protection for the building.

In 2009, Rogers' sued the city for curtailing its renovation plans by imposing municipal heritage designation on the building’s interior. In February, a court ruling ordered the city to pay almost $600,000 plus legal costs to the owner in compensation for lost commercial value.

Heritage advocates decried the ruling, arguing it leaves heritage sites at risk. In March, the province agreed with that assessment.

“This precedent-setting compensation ruling has the potential to negatively impact heritage conservation activities across Canada,” Krueger continued in his letter to Prentice. The National Historic Sites of Canada Cost-Sharing Program should be expanded to include such properties, he argued further.

The cost-sharing program, run by Parks Canada, provides partial funding to non-profit groups wanting to restore or preserve national heritage sites.

While municipalities are eligible to apply for funding, private businesses (like Rogers') are not, explained Robert Moreau, director of the Heritage Programs branch of Parks Canada.

“The Minister can direct Parks Canada to consider modifying the terms of the program,” he said. “The terms and conditions of the current program were approved two years ago and they are valid for five years, so they should not be, in theory, renewed until 2013.”

Prentice’s letter of response is awaiting signature, confirmed Moreau.

Even if the federal program were expanded to include private businesses, Victoria would not necessarily benefit from the change retroactively, Moreau said.

“That is, again, the decision of the Minister.”

rholmen@vicnews.com