Walnut Hall: Historic building dies of neglect

[Observer Walt]

^^ 471 Bloor West: Was indeed owned by a reclusive and apparently eccentric Hungarian lady. I seem to remember this was written up some time ago in the "Urban Decoder" feature in Toronto Life, as alluded to by AP. She paid the taxes, and as long as taxes are paid and it isn't a physical hazard to the public, there's apparently nothing legally to stop you from letting the property sit there boarded up.

Interchange, the property was sold late last year. The sale price was just under $2.7 million. I don't know if the new owner (a company) is affiliated with BMV, or if they are another party entirely and have leased to BMV.

 

[dowlingm]

In Ireland, legislation was passed after a few wildcat demolitions to say that an owner can be forced to faithfully rebuild demolished structures. Not *quite* on point but I was wondering if similar laws exist in Ontario.

Google "Archer's Garage Dublin" for more info.

 

[CDL.TO]

Screw it, I'm posting my pics anyway.

Federally Designated Heritage Rubble...

 

[Prometheus The Supremo]

i'm sure most of the materials in the pile could be salvaged.

-the wood is old growth and i'm sure alot of wood workers would get a woody building things out of it.

-the bricks can be used to repair other structures.


if all that stuff ends up in landfill, what a waste!

 

[Prometheus The Supremo]

P.S, the ultimate revenge..

when something like this happens, forbid development on site fo 40 years or automaticly turn the property into city parkland.

 

[junctionist]

Why not rebuild it based off photos and floor plans that are surely out there? With all the shock and disgust out there is this an outlandish proposition? The majority of Warsaw was destroyed after WWII, and they rebuilt many of their baroque era buildings and the old town. What's a little block to rebuild?

 

[Skeezix]

Why not rebuild it based off photos and floor plans that are surely out there? With all the shock and disgust out there is this an outlandish proposition? The majority of Warsaw was destroyed after WWII, and they rebuilt many of their baroque era buildings and the old town. What's a little block to rebuild?

Warsaw's Old Town is an incredible example of how to rebuild. Designation as a UNESCO World Heritage Site is a testament to what a fantastic job they did.

Here in North America, the reluctance to rebuild facades is, I suppose, largely due to the fear that the new structure is nothing more than a Disney-esque recreation of history. If done well, though, it could be a nice addition to the Shuter streetscape.

 

[simply Dan]

Didn't they recently rebuild (or recreate) a historic fascade at the Jazz rental building on Church St. around the corner?

 

[Urban Shocker]

The front of the Windsor Arms is a recreation of what was there before it was renovated about seven years ago. There seems to be a mystery about why they weren't able to save the original front; perhaps they didn't want to.

The front of the building at 145 King East, where Saatchi are, is a recreation - the brick facade was too fragile to survive being removed and re-installed.

 

[Skeezix]

Didn't they recently rebuild (or recreate) a historic fascade at the Jazz rental building on Church St. around the corner?

I think two of the three facades are recreations, and they did a good job.

I had no idea the Windsor Arms facade was a recreation.