tidbit in today's Globe:
Outflanked in condo war
Patricia Best, January 10, 2008 at 6:34 AM EST
The venerable Royal Canadian Military Institute, a private club on University Avenue in Toronto readily identified courtesy of the cannon positioned outside its doors, has weathered a skirmish over its plans to redevelop its site. The landmark building apparently was becoming a bit of a burden for the club - particularly regarding maintenance and building code non-compliance issues.
The club, which counts among its members retired and current military types plus business, academic and political people with an interest in military history, embarked on the usual long, drawn-out, hyper-consultative process typical of most redevelopment projects, and then settled on an arrangement with condo developer Howard Sokolowski to redevelop the plum site.
A dissenting group with impressive titles - lieutenant-colonels, colonels and a past chief of the Metro Toronto Police - tried to raise a rebellion against the plans. But at a meeting in late November, members voted for the high-rise, condo-ized, monetized future.