596 Church Street (Church 18 Holdings, 25s, RAW) DEAD

[dt_toronto_geek]

596 Church does need some attention to the exterior, but needs to stay.
I imagine 584 Church, Catherine Collard House (my least favorate of all the buildings on this block), to be a perfect location for either a restaurant or a cafe (i.e. Red Rocket) on the main level with the decent sized patio out front and then a residential rental upstairs.

 

[urbandreamer]

^There's another Church St condo proposal coming sometime, perhaps next year, closer to Bloor St E but with similar details==ie replacing &/or placed between heritage buildings. Will have to find the right address next time I'm on the db.

 

[dt_toronto_geek]

^There's another Church St condo proposal coming sometime, perhaps next year, closer to Bloor St E but with similar details==ie replacing &/or placed between heritage buildings. Will have to find the right address next time I'm on the db.

I won't be surprised to see a few more caps around town like MaRS 2 a year or two from now as I have a bad feeling about what's going to happen to the economy in the next 18 or so months.

I would have like to have seen a developer scoop up the parking lot next to Toronto Grace Hospital at the S/W corner of Church & Bloor, and develop that rather than fight to protect more heritage properties.

 

[adma]

Wasn't Toronto Grace in its entirety slated for redevelopment at some point?

 

[androiduk]

^ I'm kinda surprised they haven't made a move to relocate Grace Hospital. The land must be very valuable now and the proceeds could go towards a new facility in a cheaper location or on surplus gov't land. Geographically, I don't think there's any advantage to having the hospital here. I believe it's a long term care facility and patients would actually benefit from a location with some grounds where they could sit outside during nice weather.

 

[adma]

Not to mention that the premises are, perhaps, a sleeper for the "Toronto's Ugliest Building" thread...

 

[dt_toronto_geek]

Gloucester "Mansions" at 596 Church St. & 67 Gloucester Street plus the Wallace Millichamp House @ 69 Gloucester Street have all been saved from the wrecking ball today by designating the three properties under the Ontario Heritage Act. This is a huge victory for this block, the Church-Wellesley Village and the City of Toronto!

Who knows how the developer will proceed now, perhaps this just might be the end of this thread.

 

[Automation Gallery]

have all been saved from the wrecking ball today by designating the three properties under the Ontario Heritage Act.

Yeah thats good news, but then again i kind of feel for the owners cause their properties now heritage just depreciated by 50%.

 

[dt_toronto_geek]

Gee, I just can't find it in my heart to feel bad for a developer who had no reservations about bulldozing 19th and early 20th century buildings plus ripping the backs off three other historic buildings for a yet another boring glass, squat, 25-storey, cookie-cutter condo.

 

[CanadianNational]

Good news!

 

[junctionist]

Gee, I just can't find it in my heart to feel bad for a developer who had no reservations about bulldozing 19th and early 20th century buildings plus ripping the backs off three other historic buildings for a yet another boring glass, squat, 25-storey, cookie-cutter condo.

That pretty much sums it up. Sometimes common sense prevails.

 

[cdr108]

Yeah thats good news, but then again i kind of feel for the owners cause their properties now heritage just depreciated by 50%.

that's only b/c they speculated on the land value.

besides, that's not entirely true. Cabbagetown is designated heritage yet their values are extremely high, or are you saying they'd be worth double if it wasn't ?

 

[dt_toronto_geek]

Incredible news, Church 18 Holdings have withdrawn their application for rezoning of this parcel of properties, it looks like this monster is dead. Though many in the community were willing to work with the developer for an attractive, appropriately scaled development, I for one will openly admit that I was strongly opposed to this project from the get-go given all of what would have to be bulldozed to make it work.
Now, I'd really like to see the two properties at 40 Wellesley E. & 46/50 Wellesley E. in the Church-Wellesley Village developed before this cycle ends.

 

[AlbertC]

Good riddance. I'm generally in favour of new developments but this awkward infill and facadism was unnecessary. Church Street (south of Gay Village), around Carlton is where this is needed to fill in the ugly parking lots and incomplete streetscape.

 

[Marcanadian]

Great news. What a terrible project this would have been, shows a total lack of respect for the buildings and the neighbourhood.