TorontoRealtyBlog

I ask the question, because it’s probably being posed behind closed doors among Toronto City Councilors, as they seek to raise more and more revenue to fund a city that, I believe, spends far more money than they can afford to.

I’m a proud Torontonian, and believe it or not, I’m sappy and nostalgic too.

I love living in the St. Lawrence Market area specifically because of all the history that exists, and this is showcased through every red brick on every vintage 1800’s building that adorn the streets of the SLM neighbourhood.

Would you be in favour of tearing that down?

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Well, that “Notice” sign sure fooled me!

When a blog reader emailed me to say, “Can you believe they’re going to tear down 187 King Street?” I immediately set out to investigate for myself.

Here’s the public notice:

And if you want to zoom in on the image, you can see that 187 King Street, aka the “Little York Hotel,” will be retained, and possibly incorporated into the project.

As I mentioned in the video, this site, as well as the building itself, have historical significance.

Here are the two plaques that appear on the building.

The first is the “Home School District” plaque, that explains the importance of this site:

The second is the “Little York Hotel” plaque, that refers specifically to the existing building, which is almost as old as Canada itself:

So as to the question, “Do you care if heritage buildings are torn down to make way for condominiums?” I would think the answer would be a resounding “yes,” and that most of you would be in favour of preserving what little history we have in Toronto.  But then I remember a blog post I wrote back in 2013, about a landmark home in Leaside, which was being torn down so a developer could build three homes in its place.

Read the 2013 blog post HERE.

I’m not often caught off guard when I write a blog.

I know the night before, when I click “Publish” on tomorrow’s blog, whether or not I’m going to be on the receiving end of nasty comments, and as you know, sometimes it’s by design.

But when it came to this 2013 blog about the demolition of 262 Bessborough Drive, I was shocked at the response from my readers, who couldn’t care less about that house, and told me I was naive and foolish to think otherwise.

So was I wrong then?  Am I wrong now?

Let me know what you think…