IN THE MATTER OF THE ONTARIO
HERITAGE ACT
R.S.O. 1990, CHAPTER O.18 AND
CITY OF TORONTO, PROVINCE OF ONTARIO
506 JARVIS STREET
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 506 Jarvis Street 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 506 Jarvis Street is worthy of
designation under Part IV, Section 29 of the Ontario Heritage Act for its
cultural value and meets Regulation 9/06, the provincial criteria prescribed
for municipal designation.
Description
The subject property at 506 Jarvis Street is
located on the west side of Jarvis Street, north of Cawthra Square, within the
Upper Jarvis neighbourhood. Constructed circa 1889 and renovated with an
addition in 1950, the property contains a detached two-and-a-half storey house
form designed by the architects Langley & Burke, with alterations designed
by the architect Frederick Etherington to convert the structure into a home for
retired United Church missionaries. The subject property was a single-family
residence until it was sold in 1944 to the United Church of Canada, after which
it operated as a hostel for Japanese-Canadian men, a home for retired United
Church missionaries, and subsequently a lodging house. It was briefly used by
the National Ballet School as a student residence, before returning to function
as an apartment house.
The property was included on the Heritage
Register in June 1973.
Statement of Cultural Heritage Value
Design and Physical Value
The property at 506 Jarvis Street has design and
physical value as it displays a high degree of artistic merit and is a representative
example of the Annex architectural style as applied to a detached house form
structure. The Annex architectural style was popular in Toronto from the 1880s
up to 1900. The origins of the architectural style are often attributed to the
architect E. J. Lennox, however it was employed by numerous practitioners, and
was primarily if not exclusively applied to residential house form structures.
The Annex architectural style combined elements of the Romanesque and Queen
Anne architectural styles. Architectural features representative of the Annex
architectural style, and that display a high degree of artistic merit, include
the use of brick, sandstone and terra cotta cladding; fine details depicting
vegetal and organic motifs; and low and grouped round-arched window openings.
Historical and Associative Value
The property at 506 Jarvis Street has historical
and associative value as it reflects the work of the architects Langley &
Burke. Comprised of the architects Henry Langley and his nephew, Edmund Burke,
the studio was one of Toronto’s most prolific and sought-after architectural
practices for designing ecclesiastical, government, and private residential
projects between 1883 and 1892, when Burke left to assume the practice of
William George Storm’s. Their residential commissions can be found in neighbourhoods
including South Rosedale, the Annex, and Jarvis Street, and exhibit a
proficiency in the Queen Anne style alongside the incorporation of new building
technologies. 506 Jarvis Street exhibits hallmarks of Langley & Burke
including the incorporation of Queen Anne details on a substantial structure
for residential use.
The property at 506 Jarvis Street has historical
and associative value due to its direct association with the United Church of
Canada and its operation as a home for retired United Church missionaries. The
subject property was purchased by the United Church in 1944 and was first used
to house Japanese-Canadian men before an addition was constructed in 1950. The
property was subsequently used as a retirement home for missionaries and was
operated by the Woman’s Missionary Society which provided domestic and overseas
support relating to the church’s activities comprising nursing, education, and
housing. The subject property remained within the United Church’s ownership
until 1957 at which time it was sold and converted to a lodging house.
Contextual Value
Contextually, the property at 506 Jarvis Street
is visually, functionally, and historically linked to the adjacent properties
at 504, 510, 512 and 514 Jarvis Street, which together form
a collection of 19th century housing occupying the full block frontage of
Jarvis Street between Cawthra Square and Gloucester Street. Each property
contains a detached house form structure designed in the Annex architectural
style, with a generally consistent setback, scale, form and massing. Visually,
the subject property is linked to these adjacent properties as well as nearby
house form buildings representative of the historic residential context of
Upper Jarvis from the late-19th century and is situated in an area with a
concentration of properties built during the mid- to late Victorian period and
that have been designated under Part IV of the Ontario Heritage Act.
The property at 506 Jarvis Street is important
in maintaining and supporting the character of the Upper Jarvis neighbourhood
and the Cawthra Square - Jarvis Street - Gloucester Street block frontage,
comprised of a collection of 19th century house form buildings. Subsequent mid-
to late- 20th century apartment buildings reflect the second wave of
residential development that replaced many of the original house form buildings
akin to the subject property. Collectively, these properties reflect the evolution
of Upper Jarvis from a subdivision of private homes located on a landscaped
avenue to a high-density residential and institutional arterial corridor within
downtown Toronto.
Heritage Attributes
Design and Physical Value
The following heritage attributes contribute to
the cultural heritage value of the property at 506 Jarvis Street as being a
representative example of a detached house form designed in the Annex
architectural style:
·
The scale, form and
massing of the subject property, containing a detached two-and-a-half storey
house form building set-back from the sidewalk
·
The red brick,
sandstone and terra cotta cladding and ornamentation
·
The segmental-arched,
round-arched and flat-headed window openings with stone sills, brick lintels
and drip moulds, and brick pilasters
·
The terra cotta
details including string courses of organic motifs and dentils, and stone
string courses
·
The prominent roof
comprised of a cross-gable roof above deep eaves with exposed rafter details,
wood half cove shingles, and punctuated by brick chimneys
Historical and Associative Value
The following heritage attributes contribute to
the cultural heritage value of the property at 506 Jarvis Street as being
demonstrative of the work of the architectural practice of Langley & Burke:
·
The scale, form and
massing of the subject property, containing a detached two-and-a-half storey
house form building set-back from the sidewalk
·
The red brick,
sandstone and terra cotta cladding and ornamentation
·
The segmental-arched,
round-arched, and flat-headed window openings with stone sills, brick lintels
and drip moulds, and brick pilasters
·
The terra cotta
details including string courses of organic motifs and dentils, and stone
string courses
·
The prominent roof
comprised of a cross-gable roof above deep eaves with exposed rafter details,
wood half cove shingles, and punctuated by brick chimneys
Attributes that contribute to 506 Jarvis Street
being associated with the United Church of Canada:
·
The side hall
entrance porch, with brick piers supporting wooden doric columns, arched wooden
spandrels and hipped porch roof added to accommodate the United Church’s use of
the property
Contextual Value
The following heritage attributes contribute to
the cultural heritage value of the property at 506 Jarvis Street being
visually, functionally and historically linked to its surroundings and for
maintaining and supporting the character of the area:
·
The placement,
setback and orientation of the structure on the west side of Jarvis Street
between Cawthra Square and Gloucester Street
·
The two-and-a-half
storey scale of the primary (east) facades and the visible portions of the
secondary (south) facade
·
The wrought iron
fence dividing the front yard from the sidewalk
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:
Registrar 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 (30)
days of October 10, 2025, which is November 10, 2025. 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=2025.PH24.12.
Dated at the City of Toronto on October 10,
2025.
John D. Elvidge
City Clerk