IN THE MATTER OF THE ONTARIO
HERITAGE ACT
R.S.O. 1990, CHAPTER O.18 AND
CITY OF TORONTO, PROVINCE OF
ONTARIO
551 MOUNT PLEASANT ROAD
NOTICE OF INTENTION TO DESIGNATE
THE PROPERTY
TAKE NOTICE that Council for the
City of Toronto intends to designate the property, including the lands,
buildings and structures thereon known municipally as 551 Mount Pleasant Road
under Part IV, Section 29 of the Ontario Heritage Act, R.S.O. 1990, c.O.18, as
amended, as a property of cultural heritage value or interest.
TReasons for
Designation
The property at 551 Mount Pleasant Road
(including entrance addresses at 549, 553 and 555 Mount Pleasant Road), is
worthy of designation under Part IV, Section 29 of the Ontario Heritage Act for
its cultural heritage value, and meets Ontario Regulation 9/06, the provincial
criteria prescribed for municipal designation under the categories of
design/physical, historical/associative and contextual value.
Description
The property at 551 Mount Pleasant Road is
situated in Toronto's midtown, on the east side of Mount Pleasant Road between
Belsize Drive and Manor Road East. It contains the Regent Theatre, a
neighbourhood theatre from the interwar era that was constructed in 1927 to the
designs of architect Murray Brown. Originally named the Belsize Theatre, it
opened as part of the Famous Players chain and was designed to host both
vaudeville and film entertainment. The physical presence of both stage and
screen facilitated the adaptation between the two mediums on more than one
occasion since the building's initial construction, contributing to its
longevity as a community asset. The distinguishable roofscape of the brick and
stone building, the marquee, and the projecting signage identify the property
as a theatre, making it a recognizable local landmark. The property includes
two integrated storefronts on the principal elevation, contributing to the
intact historic village streetscape of this section of Mount Pleasant Road, as
identified in the Midtown in Focus Planning Study. The property was listed on
the City's Heritage Register in 1984.
Statement of Cultural
Heritage Value
The building at 551 Mount Pleasant Road is a
representative example of an early 20th-century purpose-built vaudeville
theatre along a neighbourhood main street, which were once common but are
becoming increasingly rare. The two-storey scale at the property line with
increased massing at the rear, the brick cladding with stone detailing, and the
assimilation of the building into the contiguous commercial streetscape through
the inclusion of two integrated storefronts are all characteristic of this
typology. The use of Classical design language to project a sense of refinement
is in keeping with the design tradition of vaudeville theatres, and is evident
in the symmetrical arrangement of the façade, round-arched windows, and carved
stone details. The roofline of the gabled centre bay flanked by flat-roofed
sections to either side reinforces the focus on the marquee and projecting
sign, which are also an integral part of the theatre typology. The design
tradition of vaudeville theatre is also expressed on the interior of the
building, including the surviving lobby ceiling that remains a tangible link to
the original spatial arrangement and interior ornamentation of the Belsize
Theatre.
The subject property at 551 Mount Pleasant Road
is valued for its association to the Crest Theatre (1953-1966), a highly
influential repertory theatre company that helped to spotlight Canadian talent
and establish the careers of a generation of theatre actors and playwrights. At
the time the Crest Theatre was established, the Royal Alexandra Theatre was the
only other permanent, year-round venue for live performance in the city, and
the film industry was undergoing transition with the advent of television,
leading many local cinemas to close. The Crest Theatre's founders, brothers
Murray and Donald Davis, selected the theatre at 551 Mount Pleasant both for
its location and because it had originally been constructed to host vaudeville
entertainment, which facilitated the conversion to accommodate live
performance. The Crest Hour Theatre, a touring company associated with the
Crest Theatre, traveled to high schools across Ontario, further extending the
cultural impact and legacy of the company.
The subject property at 551 Mount Pleasant Road
is also valued for its association with the architect Murray Brown (1884-1958).
The Belsize Theatre at 551 Mount Pleasant Road was among the earliest of
several theatres designed by Brown between 1926 and 1940. Brown is celebrated
for his work on Canada's only surviving atmospheric theatre, the Capitol
Theatre in Port Hope (1930) and Postal Station 'K' in Toronto (1936), and is a
recipient of the Ontario Association of Architects' Honor Roll, which is only
bestowed upon those who have made a significant contribution to the province's
architectural heritage, either through their body of work or their influence in
the wider community of design, education, and/or publication.
Contextually, the predominantly two-storey
height of the subject property, the delineated bays along the front elevation,
and the ground floor storefronts with recessed entries serve to maintain the
historical low-rise streetscape and consistent fine-grained rhythm of building
frontages along Mount Pleasant Road between Davisville and Eglinton avenues.
Located within the Glebe Manor Estate subdivision, the property supports the
character of the area as it represents the early-20th century development of
the neighbourhood as part of a prominent village main street in North Toronto.
The building at 551 Mount Pleasant Road is
historically, visually and physically linked to its setting, anchoring the east
side of Mount Pleasant Road between Belsize Drive to the south and Manor Road
East to the north. It is part of a contiguous row of commercial buildings with
a shared setback constructed during the late 1920s following the introduction
of public transit along Mount Pleasant Road.
The contextual value of the former
Belsize/Crest/Regent Theatre at 551 Mount Pleasant is also attributed to its
role as a local landmark. The prominence of the building on the east side of
Mount Pleasant Road is demonstrated through the larger massing at rear; gabled
roofline and chimney that extend above the continuous streetwall height; and
the projections into the public realm related to the building's historical use
as a theatre, including a vertically-oriented sign at the second floor and a
marquee and canopy above the front entrance, which have evolved over time.
Heritage Attributes
Design or Physical Value
The following heritage attributes contribute to
the cultural heritage value of the property at 551 Mount Pleasant Road as an
early 20th-century purpose-built neighbourhood vaudeville theatre.
Exterior Attributes:
·
The scale, form, and
massing of the property as a two-storey building with a taller centre bay and
increased massing at the rear
·
The property's
material palette, consisting of brick with stone detailing
·
On the west (primary)
elevation:
·
The gabled roof,
chimney, and slight projection of the central bay, which rise above the
continuous streetwall, giving prominence to the building
·
The wide dentils on
the eaves of the gabled roof on the primary elevation
·
The tile coping on
the parapet of the flat roofed portions of the property to either side of the
gabled central bay
·
The continuous stone
cornice that follows the roofline for the width of the elevation
·
The stone crest with
the stylized letter "B" and the stone inscription panel reading
"Belsize", in reference to the original name of the building
·
The four smooth,
stone panels above the flat-headed window openings on the second floor
·
The original
fenestration openings on the second level of the principal (west) elevation
where there are two flat-headed window openings above each storefront, and
three round-arched openings in the central bay above the theatre entrance
·
The stone hood moulds
above the round-arched openings, with their fluted keystones that curve around
the extrados in the form of a scroll
·
The stone lintels and
string course above the flat-headed openings, which form a continuous band
across the façade in conjunction with the hood moulds above the round-arched
openings.
·
The presence and
placement of a projecting sign aligning with the ridgeline of the gable roof
reading the name of the theatre in combination with a marquee and canopy above
the theatre entrance (historically supported by chains)
·
The placement of the
main entrance doors in the centre of the primary elevation, slightly recessed
from the property line
·
The two storefronts,
with their composition comprising a low bulkhead, large glass display windows,
recessed entrances that slope to the level of the sidewalk, and stone cornice
above
·
The building's
asymmetrical composition at the ground floor with a narrower storefront on the
north bay allowing an entrance to the upper floor
·
The stone detailing
on the extant piers including the 'teardrop' forms on the capitals
·
The stone detailing
of the concentric planes on the north entrance surround
Interior Attributes:
·
The spatial
arrangement of a series of public spaces leading to an auditorium
·
The plaster ceiling
with details of the sun, stars, flowers, and astrological symbols in the
original lobby
·
The clear-span
auditorium with vaulted ceiling and linear, ornamental plaster detailing
arranged in a grid pattern
·
The extant
plasterwork and other architectural details that reflect the original décor
scheme relating to theatrical history and traditional vaudeville theatre
design, including the satyr masks, wall mural fragments, and ceiling grilles in
the auditorium
·
The inscription above
the proscenium that reflects the original décor scheme, which reads "On
with the dance let joy be unconfined"
Historical or Associative Value
The following heritage attributes contribute to
the cultural heritage value of the property at 551 Mount Pleasant Road as
reflective of the former location of a live performance venue important to the
performing arts community and as a representative work of Murray Brown's
portfolio:
·
The setback,
placement and orientation of the building on the east side of Mount Pleasant
Road between Belsize Drive and Manor Road East where it is part of a contiguous
row of commercial buildings
·
The property's
increased massing toward the rear of the building, which accommodated the
historic use as an auditorium for both cinematic and theatrical entertainment
·
The presence and
placement of a projecting sign aligning with the ridgeline of the gable roof
reading the name of the theatre in combination with a marquee and canopy above
the entrance
Interior Attributes:
·
The astrological
symbols in the plasterwork of the original lobby ceiling, which also featured
in Brown's work for the Bedford Theatre.
Contextual Value
The following heritage attributes contribute to
the cultural heritage value of the property at 551 Mount Pleasant Road as part
of a historic main street commercial streetscape:
·
The setback,
placement and orientation of the building on the east side of Mount Pleasant
Road between Belsize Drive and Manor Road East where it is part of a contiguous
row of commercial buildings
·
The scale, form and
massing of the two-storey building with the rectangular-shaped plan
·
The property's
material palette, consisting of brick with stone detailing
·
The delineated bays
along the property's front elevation, consistent with the rhythm produced by
fine-grained building frontages along the surrounding historic commercial
streetscape and recessed entrances of both storefronts and the central
commercial unit (historically a theatre).
·
The gabled roof and
chimney of the central bay, which rise above the continuous streetwall giving
prominence to the building, and the presence and placement of the projecting
sign in conjunction with a marquee and canopy above the entrance, which serve
to identify the property as a local landmark
Notice of Objection to the Notice of Intention to Designate
Notice of an objection to the Notice of
Intention to Designate the Property may be served on the City Clerk, Attention:
Administrator, Secretariat, City Clerk's Office, Toronto City Hall, 2nd Floor
West, 100 Queen Street West, Toronto, Ontario, M5H 2N2.; Email: hertpb@toronto.ca within thirty days of October 3, 2022, which is November 2, 2022. The
notice of objection to the Notice of Intention to Designate the Property must
set out the reason(s) for the objection and all relevant facts.
Getting Additional Information:
Further information in respect of the Notice of
Intention to Designate the Property is available from the City of Toronto at:
http://app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgendaItemHistory.do?item=2022.CC50.7
Dated at the City of Toronto on October 3, 2022.
John D. Elvidge
City Clerk