Item - 2025.PH20.3

The Planning and Housing Committee recommends that:

1. City Council state its intention to designate the property at 750 Yonge Street under Part IV, Section 29 of the Ontario Heritage Act in accordance with the Statement of Significance for 750 Yonge Street (Reasons for Designation) attached as Attachment 1to the report (March 14, 2025) from the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning.

2. City Council state its intention to designate the property at 752 Yonge Street under Part IV, Section 29 of the Ontario Heritage Act in accordance with the Statement of Significance for 752 Yonge Street (Reasons for Designation) attached as Attachment 2 to the report (March 14, 2025) from the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning.

3. City Council state its intention to designate the properties at 756-758 Yonge Street under Part IV, Section 29 of the Ontario Heritage Act in accordance with the Statement of Significance for 756-758 Yonge Street (Reasons for Designation) attached as Attachment 3 to the report (March 14, 2025) from the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning.

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

This report recommends that City Council state its intention to designate the four adjacent properties at 750 Yonge Street (including entrance address at 750A Yonge Street), 752 Yonge Street (including entrance addresses at 752A Yonge Street and 754 Yonge Street), 756 Yonge Street and 758 Yonge Street (hereafter referred to as 756-758 Yonge Street) under Part IV, Section 29 of the Ontario Heritage Act for their cultural heritage value according to the Statements of Significance, which include descriptions of heritage attributes, found in Attachments 1, 2, and 3.

The subject properties at 750, 752, and 756-758 Yonge Street are located on the west side of Yonge Street, mid-block between Charles Street West and Bloor Street West, in the Bay-Cloverhill neighbourhood. A location map and current photograph of the heritage properties are found in Attachment 4.

The properties at 750, 752, and 756-758 Yonge Street contain three contiguous three-storey buildings constructed in 1912, 1890, and 1909, respectively. 750 Yonge Street is a mixed-use commercial building designed by the architects Curry and Sparling in the Renaissance Revival style. 752 and 756-758 Yonge Street are mixed-use commercial buildings designed in the Edwardian Classicism architectural style. Collectively, the properties help maintain and support the historic commercial main street character of Yonge Street, south of Bloor Street, through their consistent low-rise scale, form and massing, and their late-nineteenth to early-twentieth century architectural styles.

All of the subject properties at 750, 752, and 756-758 Yonge Street are included on the City of Toronto's Heritage Register.

Staff have determined that the properties at 750, 752, and 756-758 Yonge Street have cultural heritage value. 750 Yonge Street meets 4 of the Ontario Regulation 9/06 criteria prescribed for municipal designation under Part IV, Section 29 of the Ontario Heritage Act. 752 and 756-758 Yonge Street each meet 3 of the Ontario Regulation 9/06 criteria prescribed for municipal designation under Part IV, Section 29 of the Ontario Heritage Act. A property may be designated under Part IV, Section 29 of the Ontario Heritage Act, if it meets two or more of the nine criteria.

On January 1, 2023, amendments to the Ontario Heritage Act (the Act) through the More Homes Built Faster Act, 2022 (Bill 23) came into effect. Under the Act, as amended, a municipal heritage register may include properties that have not been designated but Council believes to be of “cultural heritage value or interest", and that meet one or more of the provincial criteria for determining whether they are of cultural heritage value or interest. The Act now limits listing to a period of two years.

As of January 1, 2023, should a property be subject to an Official Plan Amendment, Zoning By-law Amendment and/or Draft Plan of Subdivision Application, properties must be listed on the heritage register prior to Part IV designation and before the occurrence of a prescribed event. A prescribed event is a point of time when the application for an Official Plan Amendment, Zoning By-law Amendment and/or Draft Plan of Subdivision Application has been deemed complete and the City Clerk provides notice of that complete application to the public in accordance with the Planning Act. 

The subject properties at 750 and 756 Yonge Street were listed on the City's Heritage Register on May 10, 11 and 12, 2023 with the new two-year limit. Council must decide on or before its April 23, 24, 25, 2025 meeting to provide sufficient time for the City Clerk to issue a notice of intention to designate before the properties will be removed from the Register.

The subject properties at 752 and 758 Yonge Street were listed on the City's Heritage Register on March 10, 2016, and have been identified as candidates for designation through the City's implementation of Bill 23 amendments to the Ontario Heritage Act and the strategy for Listed Properties that must be removed from the Register by January 1, 2027.

Designation enables City Council to review proposed alterations or demolitions to the property and enforce heritage property standards and maintenance. Designation also gives property owners access to City of Toronto heritage incentive programs.

At its meeting on March 21, 2025 the Toronto Preservation Board considered Item PB29.2 and made recommendations to City Council.

Summary from the report (March 7, 2025) from the Senior Manager, Heritage Planning, Urban Design, City Planning:

 
This report recommends that City Council state its intention to designate the four adjacent properties at 750 Yonge Street (including entrance address at 750A Yonge Street), 752 Yonge Street (including entrance addresses at 752A Yonge Street and 754 Yonge Street), 756 Yonge Street and 758 Yonge Street (hereafter referred to as 756-758 Yonge Street) under Part IV, Section 29 of the Ontario Heritage Act for their cultural heritage value according to the Statements of Significance, which include descriptions of heritage attributes, found in Attachments 1, 2, and 3.

The subject properties at 750, 752, and 756-758 Yonge Street are located on the west side of Yonge Street, mid-block between Charles Street West and Bloor Street West, in the Bay-Cloverhill neighbourhood. A location map and current photograph of the heritage properties are found in Attachment 4.

The properties at 750, 752, and 756-758 Yonge Street contain three contiguous three-storey buildings constructed in 1912, 1890, and 1909, respectively. 750 Yonge Street is a mixed-use commercial building designed by the architects Curry and Sparling in the Renaissance Revival style. 752 and 756-758 Yonge Street are mixed-use commercial buildings designed in the Edwardian Classicism architectural style. Collectively, the properties help maintain and support the historic commercial main street character of Yonge Street, south of Bloor Street, through their consistent low-rise scale, form and massing, and their late-nineteenth to early-twentieth century architectural styles.

All of the subject properties at 750, 752, and 756-758 Yonge Street are included on the City of Toronto's Heritage Register.

Staff have determined that the properties at 750, 752, and 756-758 Yonge Street have cultural heritage value. 750 Yonge Street meets 4 of the Ontario Regulation 9/06 criteria prescribed for municipal designation under Part IV, Section 29 of the Ontario Heritage Act. 752 and 756-758 Yonge Street each meet 3 of the Ontario Regulation 9/06 criteria prescribed for municipal designation under Part IV, Section 29 of the Ontario Heritage Act. A property may be designated under Part IV, Section 29 of the Ontario Heritage Act, if it meets two or more of the nine criteria.

On January 1, 2023, amendments to the Ontario Heritage Act (the Act) through the More Homes Built Faster Act, 2022 (Bill 23) came into effect. Under the Act, as amended, a municipal heritage register may include properties that have not been designated but Council believes to be of “cultural heritage value or interest", and that meet one or more of the provincial criteria for determining whether they are of cultural heritage value or interest. The Act now limits listing to a period of two years.

As of January 1, 2023, should a property be subject to an Official Plan Amendment, Zoning By-law Amendment and/or Draft Plan of Subdivision Application, properties must be listed on the heritage register prior to Part IV designation and before the occurrence of a prescribed event. A prescribed event is a point of time when the application for an Official Plan Amendment, Zoning By-law Amendment and/or Draft Plan of Subdivision Application has been deemed complete and the City Clerk provides notice of that complete application to the public in accordance with the Planning Act. 

The subject properties at 750 and 756 Yonge Street were listed on the City's Heritage Register on May 10, 11 and 12, 2023 with the new two-year limit. Council must decide on or before its April 23, 24, 25, 2025 meeting to provide sufficient time for the City Clerk to issue a notice of intention to designate before the properties will be removed from the Register.

The subject properties at 752 and 758 Yonge Street were listed on the City's Heritage Register on March 10, 2016, and have been identified as candidates for designation through the City's implementation of Bill 23 amendments to the Ontario Heritage Act and the strategy for Listed Properties that must be removed from the Register by January 1, 2027.

Designation enables City Council to review proposed alterations or demolitions to the property and enforce heritage property standards and maintenance. Designation also gives property owners access to City of Toronto heritage incentive programs.