IN THE MATTER OF THE ONTARIO
HERITAGE ACT
R.S.O. 1990, CHAPTER O.18 AND
CITY OF TORONTO, PROVINCE OF
ONTARIO
60 LOWTHER AVENUE
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 60 Lowther Avenue 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.
Reasons for Designation
The property at 60 Lowther Avenue 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 for municipal designation under the categories of design/physical,
historical/associative, and contextual value.
Description
Located in the Annex neighbourhood on the north
side of Lowther Avenue, between Bedford Road and Admiral Road, the property at
60 Lowther Avenue contains a 2 1/2 storey house form building constructed in
1906 as the residence for Miller Lash, a prominent Toronto lawyer. Designed by
the esteemed architectural firm Sproatt & Rolph (in association with S.G.
Curry, consulting architect) the Friends House/Miller Lash House is a unique
and skillful example of the Georgian Revival architectural style, particularly
in its response to the site's configuration. Several other buildings associated
with Miller Lash are designated under Part IV as part of Lash's Highland Creek
estate at 130 Old Kingston Road in Scarborough, presently owned by the
University of Toronto, including the Miller Lash House and Icehouse
(By-Law No.302-1998) and the Carriage House (By-Law No.744-2001).
In 1949, the property was acquired by the
Toronto Monthly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends (otherwise known as
Quakers) and was adaptively reused as their Friends (Meeting) House. In 1969, a
rear addition, designed by Ottawa-based architect John Leaning, who was also a
member of the Quaker community, was added to the property to accommodate an
increase in membership. In addition to and complementing its Friends House
function, the property has become an important meeting space for various
community organizations. In this way, the property continues and contributes to
the history of an active community character for which the West Annex is known.
The subject property at 60 Lowther Avenue was
added to the City's Inventory of
Heritage Properties (now, Heritage Register) in
1976.
Statement of Cultural
Heritage Value
The Friends House/Miller Lash House has design
value as a unique example of the Georgian Revival style dwelling whose value
also resides in the skillful application of the style in its response to the
site's configuration.
Characteristic elements of the Georgian Revival
style are present in the following features of the Miller Lash House: its
rectangular form, two-and-a-half storey volume with an unusual double gable
roof punctuated by chimneys and dormer windows,
the symmetrical arrangement of elements, including the central entrance
with its stepped forward portico, and the original window openings with
keystones and stone sills; the unexpected bay window on the south elevation
that is mirrored on the west elevation flanking a centrally-placed solarium;
its red-brick cladding and quoin details; decorative dentil details; and
finally, as a gesture to the Greek orders, its columns, pilasters, and
entablature in grey stone. The Georgian Revival character of the exterior of
the house is reflected in the interior design of the main rooms including the
reception room, dining room, library, and central hall, which feature
classicist stylistic elements.
The subject property at 60 Lowther Avenue is
valued for its association with the prominent Toronto lawyer and businessman,
Miller Lash. The property, which was built for Miller Lash
in 1906, was used as his Toronto-based residence until his death in 1941. The association with Miller Lash is significant to the history of the
West Annex community as it exemplifies the early 20th century
architect-designed residential buildings constructed in the area for
financially affluent Toronto residents. Several other buildings associated with
Miller Lash are included on the City of Toronto's Heritage Register as part of
Lash's Highland Creek estate at 130 Old Kingston Road: the Miller Lash House
and Icehouse (Part IV 1998), and the Carriage House (Part IV 2001).
The property demonstrates the skillful work of
the partnership of Sproatt & Rolph (1899 to 1934), one of Canada’s most
important architectural partnerships of the early 20th century. As partners in
one of Toronto’s leading firms, they contributed a significant body of work to the
City of Toronto, including several landmark buildings currently on the City's
Heritage Register. Noted for its skillful and site responsive application of
the Georgian Revival style design, the Miller Lash House reflects Sproatt &
Rolph's approach to prominent residential commissions in the early 20th
century. Their residential architecture was widely published from 1901 to 1931,
and a few of the firm's notable/noteworthy commissions are in the vicinity of
the Miller Lash House.
The subject property is also valued for its
association with the Toronto Monthly Meeting of the Religious Society of
Friends (or Quakers), who have owned and used the building as their Meeting
House since 1949. In addition to housing the Friends' weekly meetings, the
rooms throughout the building are regularly rented out by various community
groups and organizations whose objectives align with those of the Religious
Society of Friends. This multi-purpose, community-focused function contributes
to the community activist character for which the West Annex is known.
60 Lowther Avenue (Friends House) yields
information that contributes to an understanding of Quaker traditions, as well
as the Quaker community specific to Toronto. Founded by George Fox in the 17th
century, the Quakers are a religious community who practice a return to the
roots of Christian faith and worship. There is no codified style of
architecture associated with Quakerism and their Meeting Houses, nor are they
consecrated buildings. The general amenability in the Quaker use of space
resulted in minimal alterations to the subject property's exterior built
fabric. This aligned with the adaptive reuse processes that typified the
evolution of the West Annex neighbourhood, which has largely retained its
residential character while introducing commercial and institutional uses. The
most prominent change of the 1969 north elevation addition reflects trends in
Toronto Quaker membership, which increased in the 1960s when American members
relocated to Canada to avoid the Vietnam War draft.
The subject property supports and maintains the
character of the southeast section of the historic Annex neighbourhood, which
is recognised by its intact collection of low-rise, architect-designed house
form buildings dating to the late-19th and early 20th centuries, many of which
are listed on the City of Toronto’s Heritage Register, including: 70 Lowther
Avenue (Part IV 2018), and 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 84, and 88 Lowther Avenue (all
listed between 1973-1977). The eastern edge of the subject property’s property
parcel abuts the westernmost boundary of the East Annex Heritage Conservation
District (HCD), designated by the City of Toronto in 1994.
60 Lowther Avenue is physically, visually, and
historically linked to its surroundings in the West Annex neighbourhood, where
it sits on the north side of Lowther Avenue near the corner of Bedford Road,
facing south to overlook Taddle Creek Park. It is part of a concentration of
substantial, architect-designed house-form buildings on the block that are
characterized by fine architectural detailing and landscaped setbacks, as seen
at the subject property. The construction of these house forms was influenced
by Simeon Janes and his Toronto Annex subdivision plan, which initially
marketed the area as an exclusively residential enclave. Additionally, the
property's construction date falls within the development peak of the West
Annex, which occurred between 1900 to 1910 (with its apex in 1907).
The adaptation of 60 Lowther Avenue from a
residential to an institutional function reflects a common trend in the
post-war development of the West Annex. Its community and character experienced
a diversification of demographics and functions within the pre-existing
buildings. Furthermore, the minimal exterior alterations required to facilitate
its transition are typical of the area’s development for large house forms
converted to non-residential uses.
Heritage Attributes
Design or Physical Value
The following heritage attributes contribute to
the cultural heritage value of the property at 60 Lowther Avenue as a
representative and unique example of a Georgian Revival residential building:
Exterior:
·
The scale, form and
massing of the two-and-a-half-storey building on a raised basement,
within a rectangular plan
·
The materials, with the
brick masonry construction featuring stone and wood detailing
·
The two gable roofs
punctuated by dormers on the south, west, and east elevations, and two
chimneys on the south side and one on the north
·
The brick quoining
·
On the south elevation,
the two Tuscan Doric columned main entrance portico with entablature of
repeating triglyph and guttae with two pilasters that steps forward on a raised
platform approached by steps and a square-sided bay window with pairs of
pilasters to the right
·
On the west elevation,
the semi-circular, four Tuscan Doric columned solarium flanked by square-sided
bay windows and pairs of Tuscan Doric pilasters
·
All original window
openings with their symmetrical arrangements, stone sills, and stone keystone details
·
Original sash windows
and patterns of window glazing
·
The deep projecting wood
cornice, cornice returns on the side elevations, and wood eaves with dentils,
as well as gable ends with dentils
Interior:
·
The interior features of
the reception room, library, and dining room including the oak-panelled walls,
oak mantelpieces and stone fireplaces, and classicist decorative elements as
well as the arched doorways leading to the solarium
Historical or Associative Value
The following heritage attributes contribute to
the cultural heritage value of the property at 60 Lowther Avenue as an example
of the work of the architects Sproatt and Rolph, and as an architect-designed
house form whose features were retained when the property was adaptively reused
for an institutional function:
·
The subject property's
Georgian Revival style design features, which are demonstrative both of the
skilled work of Sproatt & Rolph and the status of the property as an
architect-designed home for an affluent property owner, Miller Lash (an
association that typified the early character of the southeast areas of the
Annex)
Contextual Value
Attributes that contribute to the cultural
heritage value of the property at 60 Lowther Avenue as defining, supporting,
and maintaining the historic character of the area and being historically,
visually, functionally, and physically linked to its setting:
·
The setback, placement,
and orientation of the building, mid-block on the north side of Lowther Avenue
·
The property's setting
within the southeast area of the Annex neighbourhood, where it contributes to a
collection of late-19th and early 20th architect-designed house forms that are
set back from the street
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: RegistrarCCO@toronto.ca within thirty days of October 17, 2023, which is November 16, 2023. 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:
https://secure.toronto.ca/council/agenda-item.do?item=2023.PH6.8
Dated at the City of Toronto on October 17,
2023.
John D. Elvidge
for City Clerk