64 Woodlawn Avenue TLAB Hearing

This hearing of the TLAB (Toronto Local Appeal Body, successor of the Ontario Municipal Board) involved the proposed demolition of an existing house and landscape on a street in the Yonge-St. Clair neighbourhood in North Toronto. The City of Toronto’s Committee of Adjustment refused the Minor Variance and Severance applications that, if granted, would have permitted demolition and the construction of two large detached dwellings. Carl Bray was retained by a group of local residents to provide expert evidence in support of the City’s position. Along with researchers at Letourneau Heritage Consulting, Dr. Bray was able to determine that the property, previously not evaluated for potential heritage significance, was in fact the work of Eden Smith, a renowned Canadian Arts and Crafts architect. With this information, the City of Toronto proceeded to designate the property under Part IV of the Ontario Heritage Act. At the subsequent TLAB hearing, Dr. Bray was qualified by the Body to provide expert evidence in the areas of land use and heritage planning as well as urban design and landscape architecture. He summarized the history of the subject property and its urban context and provided a detailed analysis of the ways in which the proposed development failed to meet the tests for either Province’s or the City of Toronto’s land use and heritage planning policies. The Chair of the Body agreed with Dr. Bray’s evidence and that of the City’s and residents’ other witnesses. As a result, the appeal supporting the proposed development was refused and the existing property was retained.