Is your neighborhood healthy?
The problems associated with urban sprawl are getting a lot of attention these days as cities deal with increased pollution, traffic gridlock and an aging infrastructure. How urban and suburban areas deal with increased population growth was a major issue in the last federal election, and it's not a problem that will go away soon.
Canada's most populated area, Ontario's Golden Horseshoe, which includes the Greater Toronto Area, Hamilton, and Kitchener-Waterloo, will grow by almost four million people by 2031, according to a recent study. How the area will deal with all those people, when it's already struggling to cope with traffic and transit problems, pollution and a lack of affordable rental housing, has prompted several recent initiatives spearheaded by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp., the government's national housing agency.
Recently CMHC, working with the University of Toronto's Faculty of Architecture, Landscaping and Design and architectural firm ARK Ink., held a design charrette to generate ideas for building and community design ideas. The group looked at four neighbourhoods in Toronto -- a suburban region that's about 50 years old, two high-density downtown neighbourhoods, and a vast brownfields area -- to come up with ideas for creating sustainable neighbourhoods.
Sustainable building practices reduce the environmental impact of increased housing -- "a neighbourhood that meets your needs while protecting the environment and leaving an affordable legacy," says CMHC. A sustainable neighbourhood includes homes that are near shops, schools, recreation, work and other destinations.
"Like a village, these places are a pleasant, convenient and a safe walk, cycle or bus ride from home. Land and services, like roads, are used efficiently. They also feature a choice of homes that you can afford," says CMHC.
Last week the agency staged a media bus tour of downtown Toronto to show some of the neighbourhoods it is talking about. A downtown co-op, for example, had financial and technical support from the agency to create a 110-unit project that's barrier-free, energy-efficient and affordable. Another downtown project, which will offer market-rate condominiums, also had financing help from CMHC so it could convert an old warehouse rather than demolish it. That kept tons of materials from entering a landfill site.
The bus tour also showed off other non-profit housing developments and a demonstration house built as part of the agency's Healthy Housing program. But sustainable housing isn't just a concept for the city -- if urban sprawl is going to be curbed, the concept has to be embraced in suburbia, small towns and even in rural areas.
"Streets are for people, not just for cars," says CMHC. "The human scale of the streets and slow speed of the cars make them comfortable, safe and pleasant places to walk" in sustainable communities, it says.
The agency has developed a checklist for people who are thinking of moving to a new neighbourhood. The more times you can answer "yes" to the following questions, the more healthy and sustainable the neighbourhood.
Can I use my car less or not need a car at all? Can I save money by living here? Could I stay in the neighbourhood if my housing needs change? Could I get to know my neighbours and local shopkeepers? Is this a pleasant place to walk? Is this a safe community? Can rainwater soak naturally into the ground? Have natural areas in the neighbourhood been preserved? Is land used efficiently?
Some other things to look for include a number of healthy trees in the neighbourhood, which makes it feel cooler in the summer, intercepts rainwater, improves air quality, makes streets look more attractive, and boosts the resale value of the homes. Stormwater ponds and green areas also let rainwater soak in, reducing the demand for sewers and water treatment.
Less-spread-out communities are more likely to be served by public transit, and are cheaper to maintain than more low-density communities.
The bottom line is that sustainable neighbourhoods help reduce greenhouse gas emissions, reduce demand on water and sewer infrastructures, use land more efficiently, help send less waste to landfill sites, and are generally more pleasant places to live. Stopping the sprawl of the suburbs, a trend that has gone on for decades, isn't going to be easy, but if builders get on board and promote the positive aspects of sustainability, perhaps sprawl can least be slowed down a little.
October 21, 2004 in Home of Dreams | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Vertical Playboy mansion
Hef plans luxury love shack on top of Vegas casino
Las Vegas -- Hugh Hefner is coming to Las Vegas, where he'll have a vertical version of his Playboy mansion -- an 1,100-square-metre love shack on top of the Palms hotel-casino's 40-story tower that's under construction.
The two-story suite will be named the Hugh Hefner Sky Villa. It will have its own glass elevator that overlooks the Strip, along with indoor and outdoor pools.
"He's going to make it his home away from home," Palms owner George Maloof said. "He's got plenty of room to play. It's a perfect fit."
The 300-room tower opens in early 2006.
October 7, 2004 in Home of Dreams | Permalink | Comments (0)
Mayor Miller helps Habitat build
Toronto Mayor David Miller will pick up a hammer today to help Habitat for Humanity on a new 10-home project near King and River Streets.
The houses are being built on land sold to the housing charity by the city under a special deal that could see the cost of each lot reduced to $10,000, says Neil Hetherington, chief executive officer of Habitat's Toronto organization.
If the Habitat partner families taking possession of the homes are chosen from among those on the social housing waiting list, Hetherington says, the city will forgive $500,000 of the total $600,000 cost of the land.
"It's the most economical thing for (the city) to do. We pay for all the construction costs, and they forgive a substantial portion of the land costs," he said.
The three-storey townhouses, built in two blocks, will each have 1,100 square feet of living space and are designed with mansard roofs and vinyl siding exteriors to fit in with the Corktown neighbourhood.
"It will probably be the most attractive Habitat development we've done," said Hetherington.
The houses are to be built along a roadway to be called Rotary Drive, because of the donations and support given to the project by Toronto Rotary Clubs.
Partner families purchase their homes with an interest- free mortgage and must invest 500 hours of sweat equity into builds and other Habitat work.
Hetherington says skilled volunteers are always needed for the builds — particularly those with construction experience who are able to work during the week.
Call 416-755-7353 to volunteer or email agibson@torontohabitat.on.ca.
October 4, 2004 in Home of Dreams | Permalink | Comments (0)
A Bridle Path Penthouse
The best of Toronto's real estate offerings
One Post Road, on a ravine lot in the Bridle Path neighbourhood, is the location of Penthouse 9, an approximately 4,040-square-foot suite with three walkouts to balconies and a private rooftop terrace, says listing agent Richard Sherman.
The three-bedroom, four-bathroom suite lists heated floors, three fireplaces, crown mouldings and a wine cellar among its many features. There's a living room with a gas fireplace, a dining room with a moulded ceiling and an open-concept kitchen/family room with a marble fireplace and a centre island.
A built-in bookcase, an electric fireplace and hardwood floors are features of the library. All three bedrooms have ensuite bathrooms. The master suite also has a walk-in closet and an electric fireplace.
Building amenities include an indoor pool and a 24-hour concierge.
1 Post Rd. Ph9 (Bayview Avenue and Post Road)
Asking price: $2.999-million
Taxes: $20,242 (2004); Monthly fee: $3,321
September 14, 2004 in Home of Dreams | Permalink | Comments (0)
Inside Black's financial fortress
He owns a palatial mansion in Toronto's upscale Bridle Path neighbourhood. A winter home in Palm Beach. An elegant townhouse in London, and an apartment on Park Avenue in New York.
Conrad Black may be under fire from shareholders of Hollinger International Inc., but when he has to hide from public scrutiny, he has some very elegant hatches to batten down.
A collector of fine homes, Black has an estimated $100 million (Canadian) worth of property. And, although he sold roughly $750,000 worth of CIBC shares earlier this year, he also has direct and indirect stock holdings with a market value of at least $190 million.
Black's Toronto home is not for sale but, according to land registry documents, he mortgaged the Park Lane Circle property in July for $32.3 million at an annual interest rate of 12.68 per cent.
The more than nine-acre retreat features a Georgian-style mansion but the value of the mortgage far exceeds the value of the property.
Realtors familiar with the area estimate a two-acre lot in the area is worth about $3.5 million.
"The property is worth more than $10 million, plus the value of the home" one realtor said. That would put the value of the whole estate in a range between $15 million and more $20 million. The mortgage was provided by Vancouver-based Quest Capital Corp., which did not return calls yesterday.
Forensic accountant Al Rosen said it's not uncommon for a high-profile executive enmeshed in litigation to pile debt on assets in order to make them unappealing while providing ready cash.
"Would you be leaving assets out there that are low fruit that someone can reach and pick? Hell no," he said. "It's part of a diversification policy. It's standard practice.
"On top of it, these guys typically set up litigation funds anyways so that money gets siphoned off in the event that you have to go to (court). That again is standard practice. You'll notice that none of these people who get into these serious messes finds much difficulty in finding enough dollars to pay their lawyers."
Earlier this year, Black put his Palm Beach property — considered one of the three best in the area — on the market for a reported $36 million (U.S.), or about $47 million (Canadian). The home sits on close to an acre of land and features a library, exercise room, private cinema and a pool with cabana. A tunnel under tony Ocean Boulevard connects it to a private stretch of beach.
Black also has an 11-bedroom townhouse complete with indoor pool and gym in Cottesmore Gardens near Kensington Palace in London. It is reported to be worth £14 million, or more than $32 million (Canadian). Black was quoted in a London newspaper saying it has been shown to buyers.
In New York, Black owns a Park Avenue apartment valued at up to $10 million (Canadian). It originally was purchased for his use by Hollinger International but Black now owns it personally, although it is the subject of a dispute between Black and International.
When contacted by the Toronto Star, a spokesperson for Black said he would not comment on Black's personal assets. Still, Black has proven himself to be a shrewd real estate investor.
He purchased the Toronto property from his father in 1989 for $700,000, which means he would enjoy a significant return on his money if he chose to sell.
Regarding the New York apartment, International bought it for Black's use in 1994, paying $3 million (U.S.), or close to $4 million (Canadian). According to International's special report filed this week with a court in Chicago, Black later bought a smaller apartment for $499,000 (U.S.), or more than $650,000 (Canadian). In 2000, Black bought the larger apartment from Hollinger for the same price the company paid for it, even though its value had gone up considerably, using the smaller apartment as part of the payment.
According to Florida land registry documents, Black purchased the Palm Beach property in 1997 for $9.9 million (U.S.), or more than $13 million (Canadian). He hopes to sell it for far more than that, and some realtors say $40 million (Canadian) would not be impossible. It was appraised for tax purposes in 2003 at more than $17.5 million (U.S.), or more than $22 million (Canadian).
Apart from his real estate holdings, Black has been raising money in other ways.
In the midst of an investigation by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and just two days before he was removed as chairman and director of the Hollinger International-owned U.K. Telegraph Group Ltd., Black sold $654,189 worth of shares in the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, according to documents filed with regulators. On March 8, three days after his removal, Black exercised options on 4,700 additional shares and sold them March 9, earning $95,757.
Black now owns only a little more than $2,100 in CIBC common shares. In addition, he holds $57,300 worth of Class A common shares in Brascan Corp., excluding options, and through a series of holding companies, he owned 8.03 million shares of Hollinger International Inc. as of Aug. 27, worth $139 million (U.S.). He personally owns $7.3 million worth of Hollinger International shares. He also holds $255,240 worth of shares in Sotheby's Holdings.
These assets may help fund his mounting legal battles.
The Hollinger International committee that released its scathing allegations that Black plundered the company is embroiled in a bitter legal battle with him over control of the publishing company. Both sides have filed lawsuits against each other. The committee's report is essentially a statement of allegations that have not been proved in court. Hollinger International's $1.25 billion (U.S.) lawsuit against Black and his allies isn't scheduled to begin until at least January.
September 3, 2004 in Home of Dreams | Permalink | Comments (0)
Sweat Equity Builds 40 Homes
As Canadians say good bye to summer and return to school and work, "What did you do with your summer vacation?" will be a common topic of conversation.
For some Ontarians, their favourite holiday story may include the role they played in building 40 new homes for Habitat for Humanity (HFH) Toronto.
Habitat for Humanity, an independent, charitable housing program, fights to eliminate poor quality housing by building homes for families in need. One key to their growing success is the volunteer construction activity that involves recipient families creating "sweat equity." HFH also provides interest-free mortgages to families who otherwise would not be able to purchase their own home. Habitat relies on volunteer labour, donated or cost-reduced material and financial support from individuals, corporations, service groups and the faith community. Mortgage payments from current homeowners also help fund future projects.
Between June 26 and July 18, 2004, wall and floor components, which had been pre-assembled during the summer of 2003, were moved to the Toronto building site where about 100 enthusiastic volunteers began construction on the largest HFH build in Canada.
A home built for and by the five-member Jama Family is part of the McLevin Woods Habitat for Humanity project which started last summer in an 11-day building blitz when many of the components were built in Habitat's Toronto "house factory." Within the first month of volunteering, the Jamas had worked 200 hours and are eager to work with Habitat in future projects.
"I am thankful for those who made my dream come true," said Mohamud Jama who immigrated from Somalia in 1989 and dreamt that he would be a homeowner one day. "I feel that having our own home will provide my family with a positive and settled future, as well as making us feel 100 per cent Canadian."
Later this year, the Jama family will receive keys to their new home, which they helped build with the required 500 hours of "sweat equity." Work on the 40 homes continued through the summer and will proceed this fall towards project completion in 2005.
Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), our federal housing agency and a committed HFH sponsor, is equally dedicated to ensuring sponsored families understand how to maintain their new homes. A recently-developed homeowners' training program will be offered to the 40 families receiving homes in the Toronto build, along with free copies of the CMHC Homeowner's Manual.
Who Qualifies for a Habitat Home?
Habitat is open to people from all ethnic and religious backgrounds. For instance, qualification through Habitat for Humanity Toronto is based on "the reality of the need of the applicant" using criteria that evaluate need according to the following:
Candidates must be living in unsafe/unhealthy conditions or their rent must be extremely high relative to their income.
They must be willing to contribute "sweat equity," that is to volunteer 500 hours towards construction of their house and other Habitat projects.
Candidates must be legal residents of Canada for at least three years.
They must have a job and have been working consistently for three years in Canada.
Candidates must be able to afford a mortgage and not already have an overwhelming amount of debt. The entire family's employment income and/or long term disability (ODSP) income must fall with in a specified range.
Consider adding Habitat for Humanity activities to your next holiday or family activity. Whether you're a skilled worker, a willing youth, a business or a place of worship, there are ways for you to get involved by giving time, money or resources: volunteer at a build, join a chapter, shop at HFH ReStores ... a donation of $25 buys a 50-pound box of nails, $50 buys an interior door.
September 2, 2004 in Home of Dreams | Permalink | Comments (0)
Fired Nortel CEO builds mansion
Frank Dunn, recently fired chief executive of scandal—plagued Nortel Networks Corp., is in the midst of building a multimillion-dollar lakeside dream home in the heart of Oakville, the Star has learned.
According to land registry documents, the tree-lined waterfront property was bought for $4.3 million cash in August, 2002. The purchase came 10 months after Dunn, former chief financial officer of Nortel, replaced John Roth as CEO of the struggling telecom-equipment giant.
Oakville-based architecture firm Hicks-Pettes Architects Inc. and Coulson Fine Homes of Mississauga are designing and constructing Dunn's new abode, which sources say will likely have a market value between $12 million and $15 million when finished.
"I can't comment, we have to keep our client confidentiality," said Janet Coulson of Coulson Fine Homes when contacted by the Star. "It's a beautiful property," said William Hicks of Hicks-Pettes, who also declined further comment.
Dunn, who already resides in Oakville, did not return calls, nor did his attorney Thomas Heintzman of Toronto-based McCarthy Tetrault LLP.
Brampton-based Nortel announced last week it is cutting another 3,500 employees, bringing to 30,000 a workforce that swelled above 95,000 four years ago. The company, which under Dunn pledged in 2002 to become profitable again, is under criminal investigation by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and federal authorities in Texas for accounting irregularities stretching back to 2001.
Dunn and two high-ranking financial officials were fired "for cause" in April, followed last week by the termination of another seven executives.
Nortel has said it is also conducting an internal review of its accounting practices, which analysts suspect is focused on bonuses paid to certain senior executives in 2003.
Williams Owens, Nortel's current CEO, said last Thursday the company will demand repayment of 2003 bonuses worth about $10 million (U.S.) that were paid to the 10 dismissed executives, including Dunn. It's estimated that Dunn's 2003 bonuses exceeded $4.5 million.
"It's surprising that Mr. Dunn is apparently undertaking such a large discretionary project at this time," said Charles Smedmor, a forensic accountant with experience in real estate at Toronto-based Smedmor & Associates.
"A concern is whether putting these funds into such a real-estate project may reduce the potential recoveries for Nortel and its shareholders."
The Star visited the property, partly fenced in along a wealthy stretch of Lakeshore Rd. East, and was met with a polite yet determined construction worker, who escorted us off site.
Photographs from the air show a grandiose, partially complete mansion with a built-in custom swimming pool. A boathouse is located at the edge of the water, where a break wall leads to a large boat slip.
Dunn appears to have paid cash for the property, but land registry documents show the ex-CEO took out a mortgage May 10 — 12 days after being fired from Nortel — for $3 million. The mortgage was through Royal Bank of Canada at prime rate less 0.5 per cent. His monthly payments, which began in June, are about $15,000.
Ramy Elitzur, an associate professor of accounting at the Joseph L. Rotman School of Management, said taking a mortgage out on the property makes sense given Dunn's current situation.
"I don't see him being employed by anybody in the industry for some time," said Elitzur. "He probably did it because he wanted to have cash on hand."
In addition to paying for construction of his new home, Dunn faces the prospect of having to pay back his 2003 bonus, or pay huge legal fees trying to keep it. He also faces legal fees related to a number of class-action lawsuits, which allege Dunn and other executives knowing and recklessly misrepresented Nortel's financial situation in 2003 and parts of 2004.
None of these claims have been proven in court.
"He's now in a whole new ballgame in terms of what's going to happen," said Elitzur. "Just to be on the safe side he took the mortgage, I suspect."
August 26, 2004 in Home of Dreams | Permalink | Comments (0)
Loft style comes home
As far as pretty houses go, 365 Grace St. was nothing special.
It had a heavy wooden front porch on the outside and two narrow apartments on the inside.
But when Mario Di Clemente stepped through the front door as a potential buyer four years ago he saw a house of possibilities.
Instead of rooms broken into tiny compartments, Di Clemente envisioned the wide, open spaces of a downtown loft, hidden behind the façade of a traditional Little Italy home.
With his wife, Marina Boldireff, who was pregnant with their daughter, Di Clemente bought the home.
It took him a year to finish his design, creating a home where space and light flow throughout: vertically, from the basement up to his daughter's sky-blue, third-floor bedroom, and horizontally, from the front door, outside to the backyard with its musical waterfall and past the French doors of his renovated garage.
Now, as Di Clemente and his family prepare to move to a new house (and begin his next design project) the neighbourhood at College and Grace Sts. is slowly being transformed by professionals who are creating their own loft designs within traditional Italian and Portuguese homes.
Like the exterior of Di Clemente's home, recreated in a European style that blends in with the community, many of the renovated homes don't appear startlingly different from the houses that are still inhabited by Italian nonnas and nonnos (grandmas and grandpas).
The trend has created a community of homes with simple outer walls that mask interiors of sparkling steel kitchens, exposed brick interiors and window light that expands every room.
"A lot of houses are so deceiving on the outside," said Di Clemente, who earns his living as a real estate agent.
"They look so small, they fit right in with the neighbourhood. But when you walk inside, you would be totally surprised by the look of them.
"Everybody likes the feeling of spaciousness and brightness," he said. "These houses (in Little Italy) don't have windows on the sides and they have smaller rooms, so the only way to achieve that is to go open concept.
"It makes you feel good to be home," he said. "Your home is your refuge. It makes you want to be there."
Little Italy, the neighbourhood that settles around the busy restaurants, cafés and shops of College St. W., has become one of the more sought-after locations in Toronto, said real estate agent Joe Periera, who has sold homes in the area for the last 20 years.
Like Bloor West Village and the Danforth, people want neighbourhoods that are defined by an eclectic shopping and dining area, that they can walk to from their homes, he said.
"All the activity on College St. is attractive to a lot of people," Periera said. "They don't want to drive. A lot of the new buyers are younger professionals. They want to get home from work and walk down to the restaurants for dinner."
Douglas Perry, who runs a property management firm that builds and renovates homes in Little Italy, said moneyed professionals moving into the neighbourhood are renovating their homes to create the loft feeling, while retaining traditional elements of Little Italy.
"On the exterior of the building, usually it's more restoration than renovation," Perry said. "You don't want something that looks like it sticks out like a sore thumb. Inside, it is minimalist but with very high-end amenities.
"Every house is different. There are different assets within each house. That's what's kind of fun about it. There is no formula that you can walk into and put a stamp on it and that's that. You try to keep everything that's good — like if there's a little bit of stained glass, you try to keep that. But you want to make sure that you have your thermal value, so you don't get heat loss," he said.
"It's a specific market. It's not usually a family with three kids. We've done a lot of spaces where the client is a director; we've dealt with a lot of film people. Or a corporate guy up from the States, who is going to be here for a few years and wants to be in a cool place."
Outside 365 Grace St., the second-floor Juliet balcony is the first hint that this is a home with a difference. Walk through the wooden front door — which had been hidden under 10 layers of paint — and one long room unfolds, creating an illusion that defies the narrowness expected of an 18.5-foot-wide home.
Nothing remains from the interior of the house from the day that Di Clemente first saw it.
Hiring a contractor, he gutted everything, tearing down the partitions that created the tiny rooms of the two apartments. They added glass block windows, which allows sunlight in while masking the brick of the neighbour's house a few feet away.
Down came the drywall, exposing the grey brick wall that extends from the basement to the ceiling, giving the industrial feel that is common in lofts built inside former downtown factories.
"At first I was disappointed with the colour of the bricks. I thought they were going to be red," Di Clemente said. " I had to change my plans on the flooring once I discovered they were grey. Instead of going with natural wood, we got maple floors instead. Now, I love the colour of the bricks."
They built an open staircase, from the basement to the third floor, using stainless railings for the entire length. It's details like those which particularly interest Di Clemente.
Marina said her husband spent hours poring over European design magazines and weeks researching everything from iridescent kitchen backsplash tiles, to fireplace grates.
The ideas, he said, came from his own personal taste, combined with trends that he'd seen in magazines and stores.
"You have to do a lot of legwork. You have to see what is being offered out there, see what is on the market. You know for yourself what will create a good feeling within your own home," he said.
Some details are repeated throughout the house. The stainless steel railing on the staircase reflects the same materials used for the stovetop in the kitchen island, oven, kitchen sink, and door handles. And the fireplace with cast-iron front on the main floor is replicated in a second fireplace in the master bedroom one floor above.
Another striking detail is the continued use of the colour blue. It is found in spare, clean lines around certain cabinets on the main floor.
It appears again in the shade of the glass washbasins in two of the three washrooms, along with the mosaic tiles in each walk-in shower.
"We decided to add some blue to make it warmer," Marina said. "But some of our friends would come in and say that we were making it so specific to our taste that it would be hard to sell."
In the spring, the couple decided it was time to look for a new home. "It was Marina's idea to sell," Di Clemente said. "It makes sense. If we can do it here we can certainly redesign somewhere else."
Most of the basic homes in Little Italy were selling for upwards of $450,000 to $500,000. They decided to list theirs for $689,000.
"We had a bit of uncertainty about selling it, since it is such a unique house. We thought, `Will there be a buyer?'" he said.
The house sold for $670,000 the first day that it went on the market.
Di Clemente believes that with the help of a good contractor, anyone can find a home to transform to their taste.
He simply looked at the location, a three-story home facing onto Little Italy's Bickford Park, and knew that the rest was up to him.
"If you like the location and the house has good bones, you can make it look any way you want."
August 2, 2004 in Home of Dreams | Permalink | Comments (0)
Toronto's enigmatic architect
Eden Smith designed an estimated 250 homes in the city's upscale neighbourhoods, but few people know of his arts and crafts-inspired residences, many of which have been demolished
Those who appreciate historic architecture in Toronto may be familiar with Eden Smith -- a Toronto practitioner of the arts and crafts school led by Briton William Morris at the end of the 19th century.
But even they probably know only Mr. Smith's public buildings, such as the Group of Seven studios on Aylmer Avenue, St. Thomas Anglican Church on Huron Street and three public library branches that resemble Elizabethan church halls.
Not even the heritage preservation department of the City of Toronto is aware of the extent of Mr. Smith's contributions to the city's upper-class residential neighbourhoods, where he and his sons built an estimated 250 homes in the early 1900s.
And that's a real shame, according to some architects and history buffs who have watched helplessly as this treasure trove of gracious homes has fallen one by one to the wrecker's ball, replaced by modern facsimiles of better-known styles such as Georgian and mock-Tudor.
But W. Douglas Brown, a retired technical writer for the Ontario Research Foundation who has a fascination for the arts and crafts movement, has done what the official guardians of Toronto's cityscape could not.
Through painstaking archival research conducted as a labour of love, Mr. Brown has documented the life and death of many of these homes and uncovered the true history of an enigmatic architect who did his best to conceal his working-class Birmingham roots and, in the process, robbed himself of his rightful legacy.
Mr. Smith, it turns out, was in Mr. Morris's circle while attending the Birmingham School of Art in the 1870s and serving on the local architecture committee, which was closely tied to the Morris movement.
Mr. Morris lectured at the school a dozen times while Mr. Smith was there, and his ideas permeate the writings of Mr. Smith, who emigrated to Canada in the mid-1880s and opened his own firm.
He feigned a rural and vaguely aristocratic background to win elite clients rather than reveal that his father and grandfather had been ordinary builders in one of the sooty hubs of Britain's Industrial Revolution.
Mr. Smith's misinformation had found its way into previous writings about him, Mr. Brown says, obscuring his direct connection with Mr. Morris.
"He claimed he did architecture as an avocation rather than a vocation. He said that Eden Smith was a double surname and hinted that he was related to Sir William Eden [a.k.a. the first Baron Auckland]," Mr. Brown says.
But genealogical research conducted for Mr. Smith's granddaughter in the 1980s and donated to public archives revealed that Eden was Mr. Smith's first name and that he had been born, raised and educated in Birmingham.
"He thought [the deception] would help him in his business dealings," Mr. Brown says in an interview at his modest Mississauga home. "I felt it was my duty to try to correct the misinformation."
It is in the scores of homes he built in High Park, Wychwood Park, Forest Hill, Rosedale and the Annex that Mr. Smith's adherence to the organic, asymmetrical, functional ideals of the arts and crafts movement were most apparent.
Unlike proponents of neoclassical design, which were (and remain) popular, Mr. Smith did not strive for symmetry or grandiosity in his homes, and used very little ornamental detail.
They had steeply pitched roofs, many irregular angles, tall graceful chimneys and often were entered from the side rather than the front. The entire home tended to be oriented toward the garden, with the principal rooms overlooking the garden rather than the street.
They followed the arts and crafts philosophy of building from the inside out -- starting with one room and adding on as needed, rather than fitting the rooms inside a fixed shell.
They were finished in brick or stucco -- the movement valued honesty and simplicity and frowned upon false finishes such as stone siding.
A Smith home "looks as if it belongs there. It clings to the earth," Mr. Brown says.
Toronto architect Barry Sampson echoes that definition. "It's an English idea, a modest idea of a gracious lifestyle as opposed to conspicuous wealth," Mr. Sampson says. "[The homes] are delicate in their engagement of the landscape . . . they're not so much about projecting your wealth."
Some of the best remaining examples of these homes are in the little-known enclave of Wychwood Park, a ravine-side community built around a pond near Bathurst Street and Davenport Road. It includes several Eden Smith homes and enjoys some protection from having been designated a heritage community by the city.
Mr. Smith lived there in the 1910s, and built a number of homes there for fellow artisans.
The architect's first family home in Toronto still stands at 267 Indian Rd. in the High Park area and has the protection of an individual heritage plaque.
But his numerous houses in Forest Hill, Rosedale and the Annex, inspired by English cottages and mansions, have no such protection and are most vulnerable to redevelopment.
Mr. Brown's self-published book, Eden Smith: Toronto's Arts and Crafts Architect, documents how almost half of the homes he built in the Annex have already been demolished.
And even since the book was published in 2003, at least five Smith houses in the Forest Hill and Poplar Plains areas have fallen.
"I'm surprised there has been no outrage from the neighbours," Mr. Brown says. "In Forest Hill, the houses are going down all over the place and no one says a word."
Even the stately specimen he selected for his book cover, which used to stand on Warren Road in Forest Hill, has been torn down and replaced by "a monster home that uses the whole width of the lot," Mr. Brown says.
Kathryn Anderson, a heritage preservation officer with the city, says it would love to preserve these architecturally important homes, but the problem is, there is no inventory of them.
"We have no comprehensive list of his works, and there is always the problem of resources and staff to do new inventories," Ms. Anderson says.
Officials in the city's planning or building departments normally contact the heritage department if a demolition permit is sought for a building that may have heritage interest, she says. "But in these cases they haven't."
"I'd be very sad to see more of them disappear," says Joe Lobko, chairman of the Toronto Society of Architects. "I don't know why people would tear down something beautiful."
Mr. Lobko points out that Mr. Smith was also the architect of two highly successful social housing projects built in Toronto at the same time -- Spruce Court on the west side of the Don Valley and the Bain Avenue apartments, now the Bain Co-op, on the east side.
Both are considered exemplary for the creative use of landscaped courtyards to break up rows of units and provide oases of beauty that residents can actually use.
"His work has a wonderful relationship to the landscape," Mr. Lobko says. "There is a lot we can learn from Eden Smith on how to create comfortable, green, low-cost housing."
Mr. Sampson says that during Mr. Smith's time the architectural community had "a sense of stylistic leadership" that it lacks now.
"Now there's relatively little of that. There are Ian MacDonald, Shim-Sutcliffe [Architects] and Bruce Kuwabara, but they are not producing many houses. When you think of Eden Smith producing 250, it's incredible."
Mr. Brown, who says he cannot afford an Eden Smith home himself because they are in the highest-priced neighbourhoods of Toronto, does see some signs of hope, however.
"Some people are moving into Eden Smith homes, realizing what they've got and restoring them to their original form."
One of these is a home on Clarendon Avenue once occupied by Group of Seven artist Lawren Harris and another, on Balmoral Avenue, is being restored from three apartments into a single-family home.
July 31, 2004 in Home of Dreams | Permalink | Comments (0)
In a New York's Hot Market ...
Everyone Wants to Be a Developer
So you doubled your money on your condo and you think it's time to start your own real estate dynasty. Or perhaps you just want to build something both beautiful and substantial, a graceful blend of brick, steel and glass, that will make you both proud and rich.
If you hear the inner voice of the master builder inside you, you are not alone. At this boom time in the real estate market, there is a pack of first-time developers on the hunt for vacant land and development sites, babbling about prices per square foot, and for better or for worse, struggling to do the deal of their dreams.
There are real estate brokers weary of doing deals for other people, lawyers with a yen for adventure, exiles from Wall Street, doctors, businessmen and artists getting into the game. While they may not yet be ready to go toe to toe with Donald Trump or Larry Silverstein, some have gotten some dirt under their fingernails and experienced the fears and thrills of real estate development.
This new frenzy of interest may be a sign of the enduring strength of the New York real estate market. But some developers say it could also be a contrarian indicator suggesting that the market may be getting just a little too hot. Remember, they say, when thousands of people quit their jobs to become day traders, just before the Internet stock bubble burst a few years back.
"We are seeing new faces," said Steven Spinola, president of the Real Estate Board of New York, which represents the interests of the big-time Manhattan developers and real estate institutions. "There is a great deal of money available, and everyone believes that New York is an investment that can't lose."
In Brooklyn, a sculptor and installation artist, Cosimo Cavallaro, who once made a two-hour film of a burning piano, and covered a house, a hotel room and the model Twiggy with cheese all in the name of art (his Web site is www.cosimocavallaro.com), spends his time noodling with his architect, Marvin H. Meltzer, and prospecting for financial partners.
Mr. Cavallaro, a Canadian who in an earlier life made what he calls a small fortune in television commercials, wants to convert his home and studio in a former bakery on Kent Avenue, a few steps from the Williamsburg Bridge, into an 11-story luxury apartment tower, with dramatic views that he hopes will also make a significant artistic statement.
"I want to build something that is beautiful; I can't build a thorn in the sky," he said with a sigh.
The building he envisions would be called the Punctilio, a tower of glass rising out of the remnants of his current brick building, with one 2,000-square-foot apartment on each floor, topped by a deck with a pool. He hopes to sell the apartments for at least $800 a square foot, or $1.6 million each. But he still hasn't decided whether to put in a garden on the ground floor or commercial space.
In Queens, Mitch Perl, a former nightclub owner and commercial real estate broker, borrowed money from friends and relatives to complete the purchase of a five-story factory building in Glendale, on the edge of a neighborhood of 16-foot-wide row houses, and the Cypress Hills Cemetery.
Now he and his partner, Richard Bronsky, an old friend and contractor, spend most of their waking hours supervising the construction of 68 condominiums in the factory building and a new three-story building they are putting up beside it, constantly refining the finish and details. They are making a big bet — that spacious condos priced at under $400,000 will sell in a neighborhood of small 16-foot-wide Archie Bunker-like houses that go for $450,000 up and where condominiums are all but unknown.
"Our hardest job is going to be educating buyers on what condos are," Mr. Perl said. "At first I thought we would do TriBeCa-style lofts, and then as I educated myself I realized the market was 100 percent local and people wanted something else."
- from the New York Times
July 25, 2004 in Home of Dreams | Permalink | Comments (1)
