Toronto Preservation Board Toronto East York Community Council. Acting Director, Policy & Research, City Planning Division

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1 STAFF REPORT ACTION REQUIRED Alteration of a Heritage Property Designated under Part IV of the Ontario Heritage Act and Protected by a Heritage Easement Agreement 1046 Yonge Street Date: February 7, 2012 To: From: Wards: Reference Number: Toronto Preservation Board Toronto East York Community Council Acting Director, Policy & Research, City Planning Division Ward 27 - Toronto Centre-Rosedale P:\2012\Cluster B\PLN\HPS\TEYCC\March \teHPS09 SUMMARY This report recommends that City Council refuse the proposed alteration which would link both wings of the U-shaped building via bridges and enclose roughly seventy five percent of the existing open courtyard. The open courtyard is a heritage attribute. While decisions under Section 33 of the Ontario Heritage Act are appealable to the Conservation Review Board, the property is also protected by a Heritage Easement Agreement (held by the city). Refusal of the proposed alterations, subject to the Heritage Easement Agreement are not appealable. RECOMMENDATIONS The City Planning Division recommends that: 1. City Council refuse the proposed alterations to the heritage property at 1046 Yonge Street under Section 33 of the Ontario Heritage Act and within the terms of the Heritage Easement Agreement held by the city on the property. 2. If the owner appeals City Council's decision to refuse the application for alteration under Section 33 of the Ontario Heritage Act, Council authorize the City solicitor and the necessary City staff to attend at the Conservation Review Board hearing in opposition to the appeal. Alteration of A Heritage Property 1046 Yonge Street 1

2 FINANCIAL IMPACT There are no financial implications resulting from the adoption of this report. DECISION HISTORY The property at 1046 Yonge Street was included on the City of Toronto Inventory of Heritage Properties on May 2, A Heritage Easement Agreement was registered as Instrument No. C on November 30, The property was designated under Part IV of the Ontario Heritage Act by City Council under By-law on January 30, A Heritage Impact Assessment (dated October 17, 2011) prepared by Philip Goldsmith, Architect has been submitted. ISSUE BACKGROUND The building at 1046 Yonge Street (originally known as the Crescent Street Apartments) is located on the west side of Yonge Street, on the north side of Ramsden Park across the street from the Rosedale Subway Station (Attachment No. 1). The building was renovated in the late 90s to convert the building primarily to offices with one apartment above the south wing (Attachment Nos. 2 & 3). The second and third floors were consolidated into single floors and corresponding modifications were made to the exterior window openings of the new spaces and at grade along with additional architectural detailing in terms of window surrounds and shutters. The building currently houses a single corporation and the intent is to provide weather protected access between the two wings on all floors which would also allow accessibility to the entire building via the north elevator. This would be accomplished by enclosing the majority of the courtyard and linking the second and third floors with walkways. REASONS FOR DESIGNATION Crescent Road Apartments Description The properties at Yonge Street (formerly known as 1046 Yonge) are worthy of designation under Part IV of the Ontario Heritage Act for their cultural heritage value or interest, and meet the criteria for municipal designation prescribed by the Province of Ontario under the three categories of design, historical and contextual value. Located on the west side of Yonge Street opposite Crescent Road, the properties contain a threestorey apartment building completed in 1927 for W. R. Percival Parker. Alteration of A Heritage Property 1046 Yonge Street 2

3 Statement of Cultural Heritage Value The Crescent Road Apartments have design value as a well-crafted luxury apartment complex from the 1920s with elaborate Classical detailing. This period represented the peak of apartment construction in Toronto, which began in the 1890s with the designs modeled on the larger and more opulent models in New York City and Boston (Dendy and Kilbourn, Toronto Observed, 1986, 238). Historically, the Crescent Road Apartments are associated with the practice of Toronto architect Charles Dolphin. Born in England and educated at McGill University, Dolphin apprenticed with several Montreal architectural firms, including Ross and Macdonald, before establishing his own practice in Toronto in The Crescent Road Apartments were among his earliest commissions in this city, followed by the Consumers' Gas Showroom (1930) at 2532 Yonge Street, the Grey Coach Terminal (1932) at 604 Bay Street, and the Postal Delivery Building (completed after World War II) at 40 Bay Street, all of which are recognized on the City's heritage inventory. Following the completion of the Crescent Road Apartments, Dolphin went on to design The Clarendon, a larger three-block complex with Tudor inspired styling, located on the corner of Avenue Road and Clarendon Avenue. With their placement overlooking Ramsden Park and decorative appearance, the Crescent Road Apartments are landmarks on Yonge Street where the complex's scale and Classical embellishments complement the character of the adjacent residential neighbourhoods. Heritage Attributes The heritage attributes of the Crescent Road Apartments related to their design value as a well-crafted luxury apartment complex from the 1920s with elaborate Classical detailing are found on the exterior walls and flat roofline, consisting of: The U-shaped plan, where the identical four-storey north and south blocks are connected at the rear (west) by a two-storey link and separated by a raised courtyard that is open to Yonge Street (east) The stucco cladding with stone and terra cotta detailing The cornice with corbelling along the flat rooflines The decorative quoins highlighting the second and third stories On the north and south blocks, the east facades where the exterior doors are placed in the end bays Between the entries on the east facades, the large centrally-placed window openings that are framed by pilasters and surmounted by decorative terra cotta lunettes bearing cartouches with the initials "CRD On the north and south elevations facing the courtyard, the entrances placed in wide stone surrounds under dentilated cornices and terra cotta panels with shieldshaped cartouches on foliated backgrounds The metal light fixtures inspired by the Art Deco period that flank the entries On all elevations, including those opening onto the courtyard, the string courses above the first and third stories, and the flat-headed window openings that are placed individually and in pairs of threes. Alteration of A Heritage Property 1046 Yonge Street 3

4 Proposal In order to provide weather protected accessible circulation throughout the entire building, the proposed design locates a full height glazed wall two bays in from the Yonge Street opening that separates the two wings on Yonge Street (Attachment No.9) The wall meets a peaked roof form that is hipped at either end to diminish the visual impact. At the second and third floor levels (within the fourth bay west of Yonge Street) bridges connect the floors through modified window openings. A new glass skylight will be be added over the existing third floor terrace. The skylight may be slightly visible from some vantage points south along Yonge Street and certain points within the southern half of Ramsden Park. Policy Framework Official Plan Section of the City of Toronto Official Plan directs that significant heritage resources will be conserved by listing properties of architectural and/or historic interest on the City s Inventory of Heritage Properties; designating properties; entering into conservation agreements with owners of heritage properties; and designating areas with a concentration of heritage resources as heritage conservation districts. Provincial Policy Statement The Provincial Policy Statement (PPS) indicates that "Significant built heritage resources and cultural heritage landscape shall be conserved". Properties included on the City's Inventory of Heritage Properties are considered to be "significant" in this context. In the PPS 2005, "conserved" means "the identification, protection, use and/or management of cultural heritage and archaeological resources in such a way that their heritage values, attributes and integrity are retained. This may be addressed through a conservation plan or heritage impact assessment". COMMENTS The conservation strategy that has been proposed to mitigate the visual impact of the alteration cannot address the central organizing principle and heritage attribute provided by the open courtyard at 1046 Yonge Street. Even though the proposed material is glass and the structure is minimized and/or executed in structural glass, transparency is impossible. Reflection and the perception of glazed surfaces will always make the construction visible and compromise the openness of the courtyard. While the courtyard could still be described as open, relative to the enclosure of the adjacent solid built form with punched windows, it would no longer be a courtyard development completely open to the sky and the street as it exists now and as is described in the "Reasons for Designation." Alteration of A Heritage Property 1046 Yonge Street 4

5 CONCLUSIONS The character defining features for the property at 1046 Yonge Street clearly reference the fact that the courtyard is open to Yonge Street. Although a glazed treatment of the enclosure would materially contrast to the existing solid built form, the proposed work modifies the property in a manner that would alter the character defining features of this designated property, which is also protected by a Heritage Easement Agreement. CONTACT Mary L. MacDonald, Acting Manager Heritage Preservation Services Tel: Fax: mmacdon7@toronto.ca SIGNATURE Kerri A. Voumvakis, Acting Director Policy and Research City Planning Division ATTACHMENTS Attachment No. 1 Location Map Attachment No. 2 Context Photographs Attachment No. 3 Context Photographs Attachment No. 4 Proposed Site Plan Attachment No. 5 Proposed Floor Plans Attachment No. 6 Proposed Floor Plans Attachment No. 7 Existing Elevations Attachment No. 8 Proposed Elevations/Sections Attachment No. 9 Proposal Computer Renderings Attachment No. 10 Proposal Computer Renderings Alteration of A Heritage Property 1046 Yonge Street 5

6 LOCATION MAP: 1046 YONGE STREET ATTACHMENT NO Yonge Street This location map is for information purposes only; the exact boundaries of the property are not shown. Alteration of A Heritage Property 1046 Yonge Street 6

7 CONTEXT PHOTOS: 1046 YONGE STREET ATTACHMENT NO. 2 East (Yonge Street) Elevation View from South East Alteration of A Heritage Property 1046 Yonge Street 7

8 CONTEXT PHOTOS: 1046 YONGE STREET ATTACHMENT NO. 3 View of Open Entrance Court Alteration of A Heritage Property 1046 Yonge Street 8

9 View from the South East (c1997) PROPOSED SITE PLAN: 1046 YONGE STREET ATTACHMENT NO. 4 Proposed Site Plan Alteration of A Heritage Property 1046 Yonge Street 9

10 PROPOSED FLOOR PLANS: 1046 YONGE STREET ATTACHMENT NO. 5 Ground Floor Plan Second Floor Plan Alteration of A Heritage Property 1046 Yonge Street 10

11 PROPOSED FLOOR PLANS: 1046 YONGE STREET ATTACHMENT NO. 6 Third Floor Plan Roof Plan Alteration of A Heritage Property 1046 Yonge Street 11

12 EXISTING ELEVATIONS: 1046 YONGE STREET ATTACHMENT NO. 7 Existing Elevations Alteration of A Heritage Property 1046 Yonge Street 12

13 ATTACHMENT NO. 8 PROPOSED ELEVATIONS/SECTIONS: 1046 YONGE STREET Proposed Elevations and Sections Alteration of A Heritage Property 1046 Yonge Street 13

14 ATTACHMENT NO. 9 PROPOSAL - COMPUTER RENDERINGS: 1046 YONGE STREET Computer Modeling of Proposal Alteration of A Heritage Property 1046 Yonge Street 14

15 ATTACHMENT NO. 10 PROPOSAL COMPUTER RENDERINGS: 1046 YONGE STREET Computer Modeling of Proposal Alteration of A Heritage Property 1046 Yonge Street 15