Acadmey Lane Lofts
These Beach loft conversions to have ‘bunk beds’ for cars
Excerpt from an article by Patti Winsa - Toronto Star
Les Mallins, the former accountant is now a developer - turning an early 20th-century building that once housed a bowling alley into stylish urban lofts.
Academy Lane Lofts, at 1850-1852 Queen Street East, just west of Woodbine Ave., is the 30-year-old Mallins, first development project.
After driving by the building everyday on his way to work, Mallins finally approached architect Bill Hurst (who lived across the street) with an idea to convert it to residential lofts. Originally built in 1913, the structure at 1852 Queen Street East was once part of the East Ford sales and service station. Owner William Humphries Moore turned it into a bowling alley and dance academy in 1923.
Moore had emigrated from Ireland with his 10 children and originally lived in the west end of the city. The stonemason, who worked on Toronto’s Old City Hall, moved to the Beaches in 1906.
The bowling alley and dance academy lasted until 1927, says Joan Rasmussen, Moore’s granddaughter, who stumbled on the information when she and her sister Shirley Eglite were researching their family’s history.
“We spent a huge amount of time just reinforcing the structure of the building,” says Mallins. The four outside walls and the second floor were preserved. A small two-storey building at 1850 Queen Street East was torn down so the main building could be extended.
The 12 lofts at Academy Lane Lofts will have design-conscious touches, such as exposed sprinkler systems, sleek, oversized glass patio doors and triple-glazed, floor-to-ceiling windows in some units. Options include gas fireplaces with exposed steel vent pipes.
The living and dining area of the two-storey lofts facing Queen St. have 17-foot ceilings, constructed of cedar planking with crossbeams of Paralamb strand lumber. Paralamb is wood that has been shredded, glued and then compressed, giving it a grain that looks like it has texture.
In the largest loft, two sets of oversized double doors in the living and dining area open to the outside and have glass railings. When closed, the doors can be tipped in for airflow.
The two-storey lofts at the back of the Academy Lane Lofts building, which face north, have been altered - with a nod to the committee of adjustments and the neighbours.
The lofts have sand-blasted glass railings on balconies so the views of neighbours’ backyards are obscured and the two storey wall of windows has been replaced with a single-storey and sloped second-floor ceilings with skylights.
Many of the lofts have rooftop terraces and, as Mallins points out, there’s “a lot of outdoor space for a loft in the beach.”
It was a buyer in the glass trade who suggested the simple over-sized double patio doors. Mallins has altered unit designs, in consultation with buyers. In one of the upper lofts , he suggested creating a bath with a view - an elevated Jacuzzi tub that looks out a small set of double doors that frame downtown Toronto. The doors open on to steps that lead to a rooftop patio.
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