The Toronto Preservation Board recommends to the Toronto and East York Community Council that:

 

1.         The amended study area (attachment 3 of the report dated September 11, 2009 from the Director of Policy and Research, City Planning Division) is inclusive of the area located east of Yonge Street (including the buildings on the west side of the street), south of Adelaide Street (including buildings on the north side of the street), west of Parliament Street (including all buildings on the east side of the street) and north of the railway corridor.

 

2.         City Council authorize the acceptance of donations to be used to conduct the Study. All donations received should be held in a separate account designated for that purpose.

 

3.         City Council authorize the reimbursement of the Consultant, if any, selected to conduct the Study from donations received for that purpose, upon completion of the professional work to the satisfaction of the Chief Planner and Executive Director of City Planning.

 

4.         The Treasurer be authorized to issue an Income Tax receipt to the donor for funds donated in the amount of $10.00 or more.

This report examines the adopted St. Lawrence Heritage Conservation District (HCD) Study Area and provides recommendations regarding its amendment. The existing study area boundary is being re-evaluated as it does not capture enough of the “Old Town” area to properly convey the extent of its significance to the City of Toronto. The revised boundary is generally representative of the historic St. Lawrence Ward boundaries at the time of incorporation in 1834, plus the original ten blocks of the Town of York and the area leading south to the railway corridor. An amendment to the boundary would allow for a more informed, representative heritage conservation district study.

The Toronto Preservation Board recommends to the Toronto and East York Community Council that:

 

1.         City Council include the property at 291 King Street West (George L. Garden Building) on the City of Toronto Inventory of Heritage Properties;

 

2.         City Council include the property at 293 King Street West (George L. Garden Building) on the City of Toronto Inventory of Heritage Properties;

 

3.         City Council include the property at 295 King Street West (James McGee Building) on the City of Toronto Inventory of Heritage Properties;

 

4.         City Council include the property at 297 King Street West (James McGee Building) on the City of Toronto Inventory of Heritage Properties;

 

5.         City Council include the property at 299 King Street West (James McGee Building) on the City of Toronto Inventory of Heritage Properties;

 

6.         City Council include the property at 301 King Street West (Gardiner Boyd Buildings) with the entrance address of 303 King Street West on the City of Toronto Inventory of Heritage Properties;

 

7.         City Council include the property at 315 King Street West (Joseph Devlin Building) on the City of Toronto Inventory of Heritage Properties;

 

8.         City Council include the property at 327 King Street West (the westernmost portion of the property with an entrance address of 333 King Street West and containing the Gardiner Boyd Buildings) on the City of Toronto Inventory of Heritage Properties.

This report recommends that City Council include properties on the south side of King Street West between John Street and Blue Jays Way on the City of Toronto Inventory of Heritage Properties.  The eight properties identified in the recommendations below have cultural heritage value and support the late 19^th century commercial character of the block.  Their inclusion on the City’s heritage inventory would enable staff to monitor the sites and encourage the retention of their heritage attributes and values.

The Toronto Preservation Board recommends to the Toronto and East York Community Council that:

 

1.                  City Council approve the request to alter the structure at 32 St. Andrews Gardens, a “C” rated building in the North Rosedale Heritage Conservation District, in accordance with Section 42(1) of the Ontario Heritage Act; and

 

2.                  City Council approve the plans for the alteration of the structure at 32 St. Andrews Gardens as shown in the drawings prepared by J. F. Brennan Design Build dated May 2009, and dated stamped received August 20, 2009, on file with the Manager, Heritage Preservation Services, and that the alterations be completed substantially in accordance with the submitted plans, subject to the owner:

 

a.                   Prior to the issuance of any building permit for the proposed alterations to the structure at 32 St. Andrews Gardens, including a permit for the demolition, excavation and/or shoring of the subject property, provide building permit drawings with a front yard landscape plan and façade retention strategy satisfactory to the Manager, Heritage Preservation Services.

This report recommends that City Council approve the rehabilitation of a “C” rated house in the North Rosedale Heritage Conservation District (NRHCD) in accordance with Section 42(1) of the Ontario Heritage Act, with a condition that the owner obtain approval from the Manager, Heritage Preservation Services (HPS) for the final building permit drawings.

 

While the proposed additions and alterations will have an impact on the cultural heritage character of the NRHCD, the negative impact will not be significant and will be appropriately mitigated.

 

The consent under the Ontario Heritage Act is in addition to the approval of any variances required to the existing zoning by-law.

The Toronto Preservation Board:

 

1.         received the Memo (September 16, 2009) from Geoff Kettel, Chair, North York Community Preservation Panel for information; and

 

2.         requested the Chair, Toronto Preservation Board to write to the Chief Planner and Executive Director indicating its interest in seeing that appropriate staff and other resources are allocated to the Heritage Preservation Services in the 2010 Operating Budget.

 

Heritage Preservation Services urgently needs additional resources to permit it to properly execute its role as the professional focal point for the conservation of the City’s historic resources.

 

The following recommendation is provided to the Toronto Preservation Board for consideration:

 

The Chair, Toronto Preservation Board send a communication to the Chair, Budget Committee to indicate its interest in seeing that appropriate staff resources are allocated to the Heritage Preservation Services Unit in the 2010 Budget in order to fulfill the intent of Council's adoption in principle in 2007 of the Heritage Management Plan – Phase 1 and its adoption in 2008 of The Standards and Guidelines for the Conservation of Historic Places in Canada.