Jilly's Strip Club and the New Broadview Hotel in Toronto, Ontario, Thursday, July 10, 2014. This historic building was recently sold to Streetcar Developments.Brett Gundlock
The Toronto company redeveloping a historic hotel that once housed Jilly's strip club has bought a large parcel of land just a few blocks west, where it hopes to build condo towers as high as 24 storeys.
Streetcar Developments, which is redeveloping the Broadview Hotel on Queen Street East, has also scooped up a large property at 677 Queen St. E. – the site of a Toyota dealership – and an adjacent parcel of land at 77-79 East Don Roadway. According to proposals submitted to the City of Toronto for the addresses, the company wants to build a mixed-use development, including three condo buildings that will range from seven to 24 storeys and have 555 units. The proposal also includes plans for 274 parking spaces and is currently under review by the city.
The two properties combine to make an L-shaped lot with a small Queen Street front that backs onto two roadways: the Don Valley Parkway and Eastern Avenue.
A spokesperson for Streetcar said more information about its plans will be made public soon, but the company cannot comment on the property at this time.
Local real estate agent Ara Mamourian broke the news of the plans on his blog. He included a letter in his post that he said Streetcar circulated to area residents outlining its desire to get community feedback before making any concrete plans for the four acres.
"It's a bit of a leap, especially since there's no confirmation whether they're going to have an access off of Eastern, or somewhere other than Queen or Broadview," Mr. Mamourian said. "Because, if you're going to have 555 new residents pouring onto Queen Street, I'm not normally a Chicken Little, 'sky falling' kind of guy, but that would be a disaster."
However, Mr. Mamourian said he is in favour of the new development so long as Streetcar follows through with the community consultation. He said the feedback he has had from residents is that they could live with a condo development in the area – but not at 24 storeys.
"People are calling for 12 to 15 storeys. That's something that most people in the community that are usually against most developments can live with."
Streetcar's founder and president, Les Mallins, has been adamant the company will not turn the Broadview Hotel – a four-storey red brick building that has stood at the corner of Broadview Avenue and Queen Street since 1893 – into a condo building. Streetcar bought the building in May, giving the strip club on the ground floor until the end of June to close and working with local social housing organizations to find new accommodations for the people who lived in the building's upper-floor rooming house. Rather than turn the historic building into a condo, Mr. Mallins said the company will aim for a more lively development such as a boutique hotel or restaurant.