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On October 5th, the City of Toronto's Government Management Committee (GMC) met to discuss the future of Old City Hall, outlining a principled vision for the heritage property's uses once the Provincial Courts—which will be moving to a new facility—vacate the building. With the Courts' extended leases set to expire at the end of 2021, the building's future has been a subject of intense public interest, with particular furor surrounding the controversial—and we believe misguided—proposal to create a new shopping complex on the site.
The GMC considered the proposals put forth in the much-discussed Staff Report, which suggested that the property could make a lucrative and highly profitable retail hub. Though the Report examined a variety of uses and configurations for the building, including offices and publicly accessible civic space, the document came to the troubling conclusion that "the highest and best use for Old City Hall would be conversion to a retail centre."
Earlier today, however, the Committee amended the Report's recommendations to reflect a stronger commitment to preserving the site's civic heritage. Councillor Josh Matlow (Ward 22) presented a number of critical recommendations to the Committee, which were largely accepted, demanding that a greater emphasis be put on public use.
In particular, Matlow has been vocal supporter of the Toronto Museum Project, and, like many residents, feels that Old City Hall would make an appropriate home for a concept over 40 years in the making. "Heritage preservation doesn't just mean keeping architecture intact," Matlow tells us, "it also means keeping the spirit of the space alive, and maintaining its status as an important civic institution."
The GMC's Recommendations now "direct staff to release the exclusive reservation placed on the courtyard area of Old City Hall for the future use of the Toronto Museum Project and to create publicly accessible space within the courtyard and lobby areas."
A Toronto Museum would like "likely only take up about 30,000 square feet," Matlow suggests, leaving the rest of the 163,000 square foot space free for other uses. "The important thing is that the space be used responsibly, however, and that it provide something of value to the community and the people of Toronto... not just a shopping mall," the Councillor concluded.
While the Committee did not go so far as to fully adopt Matlow's recommendation that retail operations be largely prohibited on the site, the commitment to retain Old City Hall as a piece of civic—not merely architectural—heritage means that fears of a commercial shopping mall anchored by large chain stores are, according to Matlow, now far less likely to be realized.
We will keep you updated as more information about Old City Hall's future becomes available. For now, Councillor Matlow suggested that the next step may be a design competition that will help the City more acutely map out the future of one of our most iconic and symbolically charged places.
What's your take on what should be next for Old City Hall? You can get in on the conversation in UrbanToronto's thread for the property at this link, or leave a comment in the space provided on this page.
