October 29, 2007

BLACK AND MOFFAT ARCHITECTS INC./HERITAGE TORONTO

A $20 million restoration and renovation of St. Paul’s Anglican Church in Toronto was completed in May 2006. The project was recognized with a Heritage Toronto Award.

Heritage Awards

St. Paul’s Anglican Church restoration work earns praise

PATRICIA WILLIAMS

STAFF WRITER

Restoration of one of Toronto’s most historic churches, St. Paul’s Anglican Church on Bloor Street East, netted its design and construction team top kudos in the 2007 Heritage Toronto awards.

The team that included Black and Moffat Architects Inc. and J.D. Strachan Construction Ltd. nabbed an Award of Excellence in the William Greer Architectural Conservation and Craftsmanship category.

This award recognizes projects that have restored or adapted buildings or structures that have been in existence for 40 years or more.

Taken into account are quality of craftsmanship, appropriateness of materials and the use of sound conservation principles and how well the project meets current needs while maintaining the integrity of the original design vision.

“Winning the award is a big honour for everyone on the team,” said James Strachan, president of King City-based Strachan Construction, the project’s construction manager.

St. Paul’s is three buildings; the original 1860 church, the new church constructed in 1913 and Cody Hall, built in 1928.

The goal of the project was to provide universal access, security and flexibility while transforming the existing heritage buildings into a functional, cohesive facility that retained the historic architectural design.

The project involved extensive restoration work on the masonry, roof and stained glass windows of the old church as well as interior renovations and the intervention of new architecture to join the three buildings into one space.

Buildings at 167 and 169 King Street East received an award of merit for work done maintaining the building envelopes and restoring the original brick street elevations which had been covered with stucco.

The multi-phased, 34-month construction project was completed in May 2006 at a cost of $20 million. It was commissioned by St. Paul’s Anglican Church.

Awards of Merit were presented for:

•Buildings at 167 and 169 King Street East. The intent of the project was to maintain the building envelopes and restore the original brick street elevations which had been covered with stucco. In recent years, walls between the two buildings were opened up to accommodate a large store. One of the main challenges was to strengthen the interior walls and floors which had shifted and sagged over the years, without touching the original structure, as well as adding modern exit stairs and mechanical structures. The project was undertaken for King George Square Properties Inc. by a team that included PDA Architects, structural engineers Halcrow Yolles and contractor Felix Caron.

•The Stone Distillery on Mill Street. This industrial building’s multi-storey construction, high ceilings and many windows made it suitable for adaptive reuse as retail and office space. While the upgrading of services and code requirements presented significant challenges, many of the original elements of the structure, including walls, floors, roofs and artifacts, were painstakingly retained. Commissioned by Cityscape Holdings Inc. and Dundee Realty Corp., the project was undertaken by a team that included E.R.A. Architects Inc., Dalton Engineering & Construction Ltd., and Historic Restoration Inc.

Honourable mentions were presented for two projects:

•Trinity College Gates at Trinity Bellwoods Park on Queen Street West. Commissioned by the City of Toronto. The project was undertaken by a team that include architect Alan Seymour and Phoenix Restoration.

•1 King Street West. This project converted the former headquarters of the Dominion Bank, built in 1914, into a hotel/condominium. The project was undertaken for 1 King West Inc. by a team that included Stanford Downey Architects Inc., Iconoplast and Stained Glass Services.

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