Saving old Leaside
As briefly noted in last month’s Leaside Life, the City is back at the Toronto Local Appeal Body (TLAB) defending the Talbot quad threatened with demolition, reversing their withdrawal from the case in October 2017.
In December as LPOA representative, I received an email from the lawyer for the quad’s owner, who had appealed the Committee of Adjustment’s decision to defer consideration of their application to construct a new three-storey semi-detached dwelling, to replace the existing double duplex dwelling. The email expressed its strong opposition to the City’s intention to make a motion to reinstate its Party status in the case. We immediately wrote to the TLAB expressing support for the motion!
Subsequently the TLAB ruled that the City could come back in. So how come?
A critical piece was that we became aware that one of the quads – 1783-1785 – at the north end – was owned by Metrolinx, and according to tenants was being “studied for heritage.” It turns out that the province has a policy that any property owned by the province which is older than 40 years has to be assessed for heritage.
After checking with Metrolinx, we learned that the property was indeed evaluated as a “provincial heritage property.” After further digging we obtained the report and made the case to the City that its proven heritage status had obvious implications for 1755-1757 Bayview.
Sometime later, the City made a motion to reinstate its Party status in the case. City Council approved the designation of 1755-1757 Bayview Ave. under the Ontario Heritage Act at its January 31 meeting.
Where do we stand now? The hearing, which was set for February 8, 2018, has been deferred to May 28, 2018. And apparently the applicant is changing the application in an attempt to adjust to the heritage designation.
The LPOA, along with the other Parties, is open to discussions with the applicant. We are cognizant of the planning policy matters at issue: not just neighbourhood protection and heritage, but also the application’s being contrary to the Growth Plan direction, the loss of rental housing, and possibly to the City’s future plans for the area.
Finally, when will the City designate the other nine quads, including the Metrolinx property?