Toronto Condo and Real Estate Blog

Mayor wants to contest ruling on Queen West development: 48 Abell by the numbers

By Greg Macdonald - National Post

Mayor David Miller will ask city council on Monday to support a battle against the Ontario Municipal Board’s decision approving condo developments in the Queen West Triangle, and some councillors see it as a make-or break chance for the future of planning in the city.

Council will be presented with a report outlining the options the city can take against the development, which will see three high-rise condominium complexes erected in the lucrative Triangle area on Queen West near Dovercourt Road.

The most controversial building will be constructed at 48 Abell St., where an industrial building has been converted into live-work lofts for artists. The building, considered by some to be the heart of Toronto’s art community, was denied heritage status by city council in November.

Mayor David Miller and some councillors are opposed to a plan to erect three high-rise condominium complexes in the Queen West Triangle, destroying an artists’ live-work building in the process.

Councillor Adam Giambrone, whose ward includes the Triangle, said the city’s action will be about more than just this one decision — it will be about getting Toronto the respect it deserves.

“No other province has a municipal board, no other province has override features. This is about allowing Toronto to do planning that facilitates communities,” Mr. Giambrone said.

Developers agree that the city needs to take a second look at its planning process, said David Bronskill, lawyer for Verdiroc Development Corporation, which is developing the 48 Abell St. lot.

“In Toronto, planning decisions are not always made on basis of planning merits - the OMB is there to ensure that politics are removed from the process so that planning matters can receive appropriate consideration absent of politics,” he said. If the city could remove politics from its planning process, developers would be pleased, he added. “An OMB hearing is an expensive process, and any landowner would want to avoid it.”

The city is wasting money by pursuing an appeal that they have “little or no chance of winning,” he said, and it is stalling on providing affordable housing to the Queen West area.

“This project implements the city’s vision,” he said, citing the development’s inclusion of mixed use planning that will include artists’ workshops, live-work space and a cafe. “I’m disappointed the city is pursuing an appeal instead of promoting that vision and creating a policy basis for it.”

Mr. Giambrone said the city has three options for the Queen West Triangle. The first is to take the decision to divisional court, but this can only be done if there was a legal breach in the original process. The second option is for the OMB to decide to review its decision, which is extremely rare, according to the councillor. The final approach available to the city is to appeal to the provincial government.

“None of these things generally happen– we’re really breaking new ground here,” Mr. Giambrone said.

Councillor Adam Vaughan said yesterday the “colonial rule” of the OMB isn’t the only planning problem the city faces.

“We are hung up on dealing with the height and mathematics of planning as opposed to the social dynamics of neighbourhoods,” he said.

Mr. Vaughan also cautioned against the construction of large condominium towers that provide only bachelor or single-bedroom units. He thinks the city needs to start looking at buildings themselves as neighbourhoods — diverse in both structure and people.

“Something organic like a city has to grow and has to accommodate growth. Growth is a good thing. Height and density are the right things in the right places. We just have to start asking, ‘What does the city want out of new growth?’ ” Mr. Vaughan said.

He hopes council will be able to take that approach if they get the chance to take a second look at development on Queen West.

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Critics say local artists are being pushed out

By Greg Macdonald - National Post

The Ontario Municipal Board approved the development of five high-rise condominium towers in a small area on Queen Street West near Dovercourt Road known as the “Triangle” yesterday.

The towers will be part of three main structures at 150 Sudbury St., 1171 Queen St. W. and 48 Abell St. that will form a triangle of residential units in what the OMB calls “one of the remaining opportunities for new development along Queen Street West.” Combined, the buildings could bring more than 2,000 new residents to the area.

The biggest structure will be built on 48 Abell St. It will consist of two large towers — one 18 storeys and the other 14 storeys. They will both connect to a four storey, brick-facade base, which will contain both residences and artists’ workshops. The base will surround mews that will contain cafes and galleries.

“We envision this as the cornerstone of the community,” said lawyer David Bronskill, who represents Verdiroc Development Corporation.

The plans also include as many as 190 affordable housing units in the Abell Street location’s southwest tower, pending funding approval.

There has been controversy over the area’s development. Local artists and residents are opposed to the destruction of the 48 Abell St. location, an industrial building built in the 1800s that has been converted into residences. It houses a variety of artists who create an energy and entity that drives the creative community in Toronto, said Councillor Adam Giambrone.

“We won’t be able to recreate that, no matter how much we try,” he said. “It wasn’t just their presence that was important, it was their dynamic.”

The area’s creative heritage will not be forgotten, Mr. Bronskill said. Some of the potential affordable housing units will be live-work studios for artists, and the brick facade will “recall” the original structure, he said.

But it won’t necessarily be as good as the spaces they have now, Mr. Giambrone said.

“It can’t just be affordable housing. The condos will have to have higher ceilings, natural light and big windows to replicate what they have now. It’s hard to put a kiln in a standard condo.”

Residents of the historic building - although not historic enough to be considered a heritage site by city council - agree that 48 Abell St. will be hard to replace.

Jessica Rose, who has been protesting the development, said she felt “very sad” when she heard the news.

“It was the perfect combination of community and physical attributes of the building. It’s the perfect place for an artist’s studio,” she said.

Others feel that their credibility and work are being exploited to market the new condos.

“The condos are selling on the merit of the artists in the area,” said Sabrina Saccoccio, who has lived in the building for about a year.

“Most of the artists won’t be able to afford these condos, and they’re effectively driving the creative community away.”

Mr. Giambrone said some good did come out of the OMB ruling.

“We have plans for a new park. Not a small park, either. The residents have never had access to something like this before. It will be good for the community,” he said.

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Rejects as ‘utter nonsense’ developer’s claim that critics oppose project because of its affordable housing component

Excerpt from an article by John Spears - Toronto Star

A developer who won Ontario Municipal Board approval for a condo development in the Queen West Triangle says critics of his application are opposed to the fact it envisions a high-rise with affordable housing.

“The only reason anyone would be blocking this, as far as we’re concerned, is to stop the affordable housing,” Cary Green, executive vice-president of the Verdiroc Development Corporation, told reporters at Toronto City Hall yesterday.

His firm’s plan proposes an 18-storey building with 190 units of affordable housing – 30 to 40 for artists – as well as a 14-storey condo tower with market units, and an eight-storey podium connecting both buildings.

The project is planned for 48 Abell St. and is one of three OMB-approved projects in the Queen West triangle. The Abell address is now an industrial building that’s been converted to artists’ lofts and studios. It would be demolished under the proposal.

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