Queen City Vinegar Co. Lofts retain industrial character
Vinegar made in former factory - company name still above front door
Excerpt from an article by W.D. Lighthall - Toronto Star
You can’t miss the evidence proving the industrial pedigree of the building on its way to becoming the Queen City Vinegar Co. Lofts - it’s right there above the main entrance.
In 1907, Queen City Vinegar Co. Ltd. built this three-storey production facility and warehouse on River St. and to this day the company’s name, carved in a style of lettering fashionable 100 years ago, remains fully visible in the stonework above the building’s front door.
“It’s a nice feature, to have the company name over the entrance,” says Alie Warren, vice-president of sales and marketing for Streetcar Developments Inc., the company behind the Queen City Vinegar Co. Lofts project.
“It’s a great building that has a lot of that authentic industrial character to it. Not only do we appreciate it being an original loft-type building, we know our purchasers do. There’s a need for this kind of building on the market,” Warren says.
The loft-styled condos in the 38-unit Queen City Vinegar Co. Lofts feature all the classic elements of Canadian industrial architecture in the early 20th-century - brick walls, exposed post-and-beam structural system, polished concrete floors, high ceilings and extended-height windows, which were built to allow lots of natural light into the factory’s working environment.
The stone detailing around the Queen City Vinegar Co. Lofts entrance has already been refurbished, and although two new storeys are being added to the structure, the original rooftop parapet features will also be restored and maintained.
Where Streetcar has to dismantle interior walls, they plan to use those bricks to build some non-load bearing walls in the two storeys of new lofts.
“So that brings that theme and feel of the building’s original architecture into the new lofts,” Warren says.
Queen City Vinegar Co. Lofts offers one-bedroom units, with and without dens, and two-bedroom units. Unit sizes range from 624 to 1,030 square feet and prices range from $211,900 to $364,000. Maintenance fees are estimated at a monthly 37 cents per square foot.
Ceiling heights are 12 to 14 feet on storeys one to three, and 10 feet on storeys four and five. All but three lofts have either an outdoor terrace or balcony.
Construction is underway and occupancies are expected to start in July 2008.
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