Talbot apartments headed to court

City and residents win at OMB, but developer appeals
Redevelopment of heritage apartments could end up in court
By Kris Scheuer
(Written for Town Crier April 28.)

Leasiders are celebrating the Ontario Municipal Board’s rejection of a
developer’s plan to tear down the heritage Talbot apartment complex on
Bayview.
However, their victory cries are muted because the site’s owner is seeking
leave to appeal the board’s decision to the Ontario Divisional Court.
Local councillor John Parker is pleased with the board’s rejection of a
redevelopment plan to demolish the apartments and construct an eight-storey
building and 54 townhouses.
“I was pleased with the Ontario Municipal Board result,” he said. “I saw it
as a long shot they’d see latitude for an appeal.”
Before the court rules on anything, a judge or a panel of judges must decide
if there are legal reasons for this appeal, and if so, determine if those
issues are significant enough to warrant an examination of the board ruling,
said Parker, a lawyer by trade.

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Leasiders celebrate saving Talbot Apartments

OMB decides in favour of protecting 1930s complex
Bayview Ave garden court apartments built by former Leaside mayor
By Kris Scheuer
(Written for Town Crier April 8  UPDATE HERE.)

Leasiders stand in front of one of three protected Bayview apartment complexes. Town Crier file photo by Francis Crescia.

Many Leasiders are breathing a collective sigh of relief this morning.
A multi-year battle mounted by residents and the city to stop the demolition and redevelopment of the heritage Talbot apartments has been successful.
In a 26-page decision, the Ontario Municipal Board denied ADMNS Kelvingrove Investment Corp its plan to demolish 21 low-rise apartments at 1325, 1351 and 1365 Bayview Avenue.
The developer planned to bulldoze the Talbot Apartments — built by former Leaside mayor Henry Howard Talbot — and replace them with an eight-storey rental building and 54 townhomes.
Carol Burtin Fripp with the Leaside Property Owners Association could not contain her excitement after hearing the news.
“We are thrilled, relieved and gratified that this community effort was a success,” she said. “We have a lot of power when we work together.”
What this means is the current tenants who reside in the 1930s-built buildings can stay.

Talbot Apartment OMB hearing postponed

The Ontario Municipal Board will now consider Leaside buildings’ fate in Nov.
By Kris Scheuer
(Originally published Aug. 17 for Town Crier.)

Those wanting a swift conclusion to the long battle over preserving Leaside’s Talbot apartments will likely wait until the new year for a decision.
The Ontario Municipal Board has rescheduled the case from Aug. 24 until Nov. 2.
The municipal government sought the adjournment because during the 39-day strike city planning lawyers were redeployed to other duties and witnesses were walking the picket lines.
OMB member Marc Denhez delivered the oral decision to postpone the case at the end of a July 31 conference call with representatives from all three parties, according to Carol Burtin Fripp, a director with the Leaside Property Owners Association, which is participating in the hearings. 
“It’s given us more time to get our statements together from residents who are participants,” she said following the postponement.