A truly unique two-storey brick stable from the early 1900s, now a residential blank canvas on its own lot, fronting onto a quiet lane a block from the University of Toronto in the heart of Harbord Village. Ready to be renovated into a one of a kind home. Architecturally distinct reflecting its colourful history as the stable for Grimsby dairy.
The building is wide and open like a loft and stripped down to its structure: triple-wythe brick walls, steel beams carrying an open span, and the original vaulted concrete ceiling exposed over the ground floor. Light floods in from the south, east and west, with views east to Robert Street and down Sappers Lane, and west along the elbow of the lane to Major Street. Very generous footprint with 2,500 square feet of space.
Harbord Village at its best is steps up Major: Harbord Bakery, cafés and restaurants. The Daniels Faculty of Architecture is three blocks away. Spadina TTC Station is on both subway lines, the Spadina and College streetcars are close by, and there are bike lanes along Harbord Street.
A zoning certificate has been approved to add parking as a built in garage and useful preliminary build steps already undertaken include: survey, zoning has been tested, structural report, measured drawings and a hazardous materials survey (nothing extreme). This is a rare opportunity to apply modern creativity to a loft style space with a rich history.
Featured in a recent Spacing magazine article offering a deep dive into the history of "the stable" including a period in the 1980's when it was a culturally significant letterpress shop. Interesting history, unique architecture and tucked away inconspicuously in the middle of one of the city's most sought after neighbourhoods!
