![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Auto-shop-in-Missy-to-be-Heritage-Site-designated-2-circa-1978-from-Missy-Library.jpg\")
<\/p>\nThe property at 202 Dundas St. W. in Mississauga, as it appears more recently, has been tapped for designation under the Ontario Heritage Act. (Photo: Metrolinx)<\/p>\n
A century-old building that houses a used car dealership\/automotive services business in the heart of Mississauga has been tapped for heritage designation as it represents \u201ca rare remnant automotive service station,\u201d the city says.<\/p>\n
In a report to the City of Mississauga\u2019s heritage advisory committee, the city\u2019s planning and building commissioner, Andrew Whittemore, recommends preserving the structure located at 202 Dundas St. W. for future generations to appreciate. The location operates today as Capital Auto\/Capital Motors.<\/p>\n
The recommendation, to be considered at the committee\u2019s next meeting on Tuesday, urges the city to designate the site under the Ontario Heritage Act \u201cfor its physical, design, historical, associative and contextual value.\u201d<\/p>\n
The building, located a couple of blocks west of Hurontario Street, was constructed as a house in the 1920s before being converted by Albert Russell into a \u201cneeded automotive service centre on Highway 5 (now Dundas Street West) in 1946,\u201d the report stated.<\/p>\n
In 1955, American Cities Services Oil, which no longer exists, added the double-height Doric columns to conform with the look of its gas stations, Whittemore noted in his report. It remained a Cities Services Oil station until 1964.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Site as it appeared in 1978, when it was called Russell\u2019s Garage. (Photo: Metrolinx\/Mississauga Library System)<\/p>\n
Russell sold the property in 1975, but it still serves as an automotive shop today (and car dealership), according to the planning and building commissioner\u2019s report.<\/p>\n
The City of Mississauga added the property to its Heritage Register in 1989, and now a heritage designation is being sought.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe property is a rare remnant automotive service station on this thoroughfare in Cooksville,\u201d the report said, adding \u201cthe use of an extant house for a service station speaks to the evolving needs of the community in the mid-20th century when automobile transportation was paramount.\u201d<\/p>\n
The report concluded the property \u201cmerits designation under the Ontario Heritage Act.\u201d<\/p>\n
In 2022, construction engineering firm AECOM completed a comprehensive Cultural Heritage Evaluation Report on the Dundas Street West property, the city said. The report was completed for provincial transit agency Metrolinx, which is involved in the Dundas Bus Rapid Transit project.<\/p>\n
AECOM noted the building \u201cis a unique example of a house converted to a century automobile service and gas station in the mid-20th century in the community of Cooksville.<\/p>\n
\u201cHistorically,\u201d the firm\u2019s report continued, \u201c202 Dundas St. W. is significant to the community of Cooksville since it has associative value as a contributor to the automobile service station heritage of Cooksville. Service stations in Cooksville supported vehicles utilizing Dundas Street, especially after it became a highway in the 1920s.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cooksville was recognized as a hub for automotive servicing, the report further noted, and \u201cas 202 Dundas St. W. represents an early 20th century residential property that was converted for commercial use as an automobile service station in the mid-20th century, it contributes to the understanding of the history of transportation on Dundas Street and the evolution into an era where the personal automobile was the primary mode of transportation.\u201d<\/p>\n
In addition, AECOM pointed out, the site in question, as a mid-20th century automobile service station, \u201cis visually and historically linked to the other automobile service stations at 189 and 200 Dundas St. W. that surround Dundas Street and Argyle Road in the community of Cooksville.\u201d<\/p>\n