Item - 2021.PB28.5

The Toronto Preservation Board recommends that:

1.  City Council state its intention to designate the property at 2365 Bayview Avenue under Part IV, Section 29 of the Ontario Heritage Act in accordance with the Statement of Significance; 2365 Bayview Avenue (Reasons for Designation) attached as Attachment 3, to the report (November 5, 2021) from the Senior Manager, Heritage Planning, Urban Design, City Planning:

2.  If there are no objections to the designation, City Council authorize the City Solicitor to introduce the Bill in Council designating the property under Part IV, Section 29 of the Ontario Heritage Act.

This report recommends that City Council state its intention to designate the listed heritage property at 2365 Bayview Avenue (the Frank P. Wood estate) under Part IV, Section 29 of the Ontario Heritage Act.

The property at 2365 Bayview Avenue, containing the Frank P. Wood estate now known as the Crescent School, is part of a sequence of grand estates, constructed between 1920 and1940, on the forested ravine above the western branch of the Don River, in the Bridle Path-Sunnybrook-York Mills neighbourhood. The property was originally listed on the North York Inventory of Heritage Properties in 1998 and following municipal amalgamation included on the City of Toronto's Heritage Register in 2006.

On March 6, 2020, a Site Plan Control application was submitted to the City to permit a two-storey addition which will connect to the north side-wall of the manor house's service wing. Its construction will result in the demolition of the remnant of the second garage and the infilling of the remaining portion of the service court. No alterations are proposed to the manor house. Following City staff's additional research and evaluation under Ontario Regulation 9/06, the provincial criteria prescribed for municipal designation, it has been determined that the property at 2365 Bayview Avenue merits designation under Part IV Section 29 of the Ontario Heritage Act for its design, associative and contextual value.

A report, January 25, 2021, from the Senior Manager, Heritage Planning recommending the intention to designate the property at 2365 Bayview Avenue under Part IV, Section 29 of the Ontario Heritage Act was referred back to staff at the April 20, 2021 meeting of the North York Community Council for further consultation with the property owner.  Prior to Community Council's decision, the Toronto Preservation Board adopted the Senior Manager's January 25, 2021 report on February 17, 2021.

As a result of consultation with the property owner in the recent months, staff revised the Statement of Significance (Reasons for Designation) - 2365 Bayview Avenue (Attachment 3) to include additions under the description of heritage attributes to provide further clarification with regard to two attributes of the Frank P. Wood estate, now the Crescent School. The revisions also include a correction under the Description section indicating that the log cabin was designed by the architect Gordon Gibson.

The designation of the Frank P. Wood estate (now known as the Crescent School) at 2365 Bayview Avenue would identify all of the property's cultural heritage values and heritage attributes which shall be conserved.  Designation enables City Council to review proposed alterations for the property, enforce heritage property standards and maintenance, and refuse demolition. 

In June 2019, the More Homes, More Choice Act, 2019 (Bill 108) received Royal Assent. Schedule 11 of this Act included amendments to the Ontario Heritage Act (OHA). The Bill 108 Amendments to the OHA came into force on July 1, 2021, which included a shift in Part IV designations related certain Planning Act applications. Section 29(1.2) of the OHA now restricts City Council's ability to give notice of its intention to designate a property under the OHA to within 90 days after the City Clerk gives notice of a complete application. The application currently under review was deemed complete prior to the new legislation coming into force.