Howard Street and Glen Road

[LowPolygon]

A question: does anyone know what accounts for the sad and desolate condition of the little area on the east side of Sherbourne St. just south of Bloor?

It’s a strange and lonely little stretch—Howard St and Glen Road are particularly bleak.

Many of the houses are late 19th—early 20th century and quite lovely, yet they have been deserted for decades.

Glen Road in particular is really quite strange. It has the grimy entrance to the Sherbourne subway, and the tunnel to the Rosedale foot bridge on one end. The entire West side of the street is bricked up Victorian houses.

Glen, Howard and Bleecker were all really beautiful back in the day, until St James Town destroyed the neighbourhood. But that was 45 years ago. You would think this area would have been resuscitated by now.

The area is due for a re-look as Howard St is right across the road from the James Cooper Mansion—the site of the new Tridel condo.

Actually I find it kind of amazing that Tridel is putting a spiffy new condo in this stretch of downtown. Its certainly the grittiest location for a trendy new condo that we’ve seen.

Ok, its not as extreme as a Spire on the corner of Queen and Lansdowne—but its tilting in that direction.

here are some photos of the area from the other day:

 

[Bentley]

I'm sure some developer has bought those properties and is waiting for the right time to build. Probably once James Cooper Mansions are done, that way as the area becomes increasingly more gentrified they can profit more.

Anybody with MLS access have any recent sales records of those properties? I'd love to know what they sold for last (or if they still haven't sold, have they been listed recently and for what?)

 

[maestro]

yeah ... most of the north side of Howard is vacant property which I'm surprised hasn't been gobbled up for the next shittyplace. (Think a 50 storey flatiron building at the corner of Bloor, Howard, and Parliament)

The townhouses on Glen have been abandoned since a condo development collapse in the early 1990s. The current ownership of this block of boarded up buildings is a real slumlord allowing buildings to rot while waiting for the right price.I only hope Karma bites them in their collective asses with these buildings receiving heritage status this year and new laws being implemented on a minimum state of good repair.

 

[LowPolygon]

yikes, you're right: a building on this corner is probably inevitable--but would be extremely unwelcome in my estimation.

it provides a lovely opening to a great view of the forest in the city.

 

[JasonParis]

There's more info on the area in this old thread...

http://www.urbantoronto.ca/showthread.php?t=2831&highlight=Glen+Road

 

[Anchorless]

A question: does anyone know what accounts for the sad and desolate condition of the little area on the east side of Sherbourne St. just south of Bloor?

It’s a strange and lonely little stretch—Howard St and Glen Road are particularly bleak.

Many of the houses are late 19th—early 20th century and quite lovely, yet they have been deserted for decades.

Glen Road in particular is really quite strange. It has the grimy entrance to the Sherbourne subway, and the tunnel to the Rosedale foot bridge on one end. The entire West side of the street is bricked up Victorian houses.

Glen, Howard and Bleecker were all really beautiful back in the day, until St James Town destroyed the neighbourhood. But that was 45 years ago. You would think this area would have been resuscitated by now.

The area is due for a re-look as Howard St is right across the road from the James Cooper Mansion—the site of the new Tridel condo.

Actually I find it kind of amazing that Tridel is putting a spiffy new condo in this stretch of downtown. Its certainly the grittiest location for a trendy new condo that we’ve seen.

Ok, its not as extreme as a Spire on the corner of Queen and Lansdowne—but its tilting in that direction.

here are some photos of the area from the other day:

Here's an image of the same house, taken in 1913. What a shame.

 

[junctionist]

Oddly, those houses have no graffiti and what looks to be a recent coat of red paint.

Also, Darkstar416: that link doesn't go to a thread about this area.

 

[jaborandi]

Those house on Glen Road have been boarded up since the late 1970s.

 

[AlvinofDiaspar]

maestro:

The current ownership of this block of boarded up buildings is a real slumlord allowing buildings to rot while waiting for the right price.I only hope Karma bites them in their collective asses with these buildings receiving heritage status this year and new laws being implemented on a minimum state of good repair.

I wonder what are the legal penalties for letting designated (or listed) structure fall into decay under the new law. Somehow I suspect they might be willing to swallow that price - whatever it maybe.

Time to expropriate these suckers.

AoD

 

[SunriseChampion]

That second photo says it all: shame.

What I don't understand (and perhaps I'm overly naive in this regard) is why these types of slumlords don't turn their properties into money-making ventures in the meantime?

Is it really worth sitting on a piece of land that you're putting money into (taxes) with no money coming back to you, waiting for a hypothetical future payout that'll make you rich if you haven't died by then?

Makes no sense to me.

I'm sure most of these properties were in decent shape when they were first purchased prior to boarding-up. Why couldn't they have been made into rentals, if nothing else? You know, some income whilst you're waiting for your hypothetical future payout.

Either way, I sincerely believe (and market freedoms be damned) that it should be illegal to hold properties like this as nothing more than dilapitated inefficiencies in the urban system.

Or, what AoD said: expropriate these buildings (and others like them throughout the city).

 

[maestro]

I'm sure most of these properties were in decent shape when they were first purchased prior to boarding-up. Why couldn't they have been made into rentals, if nothing else? You know, some income whilst you're waiting for your hypothetical future payout.

These guys were big time builders in the sixties and seventies. I doubt back then they would of thought two of the five partners would be bankrupt and there wouldn't be some 30 storey, 500+ units decaying monolith occupying the site 30 plus years later.

Anywho, I can imagine the site's value being worth multiple millions more without the designated structures and it would probably take hundreds of years for rental income to make up the difference. (Of course, it may take hundreds of years for these houses to collapse if they are solid brick however, the bricks say just a facade)

Bleeman. Grossman, J Silver and the defunct Merkur and Roth built St Jamestown, Crescent Town, and 40 Homewood, for example .

 

[Observer Walt]

In response to someone's query above, these properties have been owned by the same group of companies since December 1987. There have been no listings for sale through the Toronto Real Estate Board for at least the past eight years.

 

[Archivist]

I may have posted this before - but here's what I always thought would be cool for that little stretch of Glen Road. It's likely not possible, but just as a thought.

1. The City expropriates the properties, given that they have been vacant for so long and are on the Inventory.
2. Glen Road is turned into a financial incubator for nearby St. Jamestown. The City provides assistance and/or loan guarantees and organizes a project whereby residents can operate businesses out of the buildings, such as restaurants. Perhaps volunteers could be sought to provide advice - or students could assist with running the business while the locals concentrate on the food and service.
3. The ultimate goal is to have a pedestrian street, connected to the subway, lined with authentic restaurants or other businesses that provide opportunities to new Canadians to learn about business. It could be advertised as a destination.

It's all very unlikely to happen, particularly now, but I always thought it would be a cool thing to do. Toronto doesn't have enough really out of the way streets that are lined with cafes and restaurants.

But the buildings will likely continue their rot and fall down, as the James Chalmers Building did in 2006, and eventually maybe be replaced with really low grade condos. "Star of St. Jamestown"?

 

[cdr108]

^^^

i like that proposal ... it gives back to the community and re-habs the buildings.

 

[Blovertis]

Great idea. Could be like the Baldwin Street of the east side.