Empress Hotel (Toronto)

Last updated
Empress Hotel
Yonge and Gould Streets, looking south-east (1979).jpg
335 Yonge Street in 1979
Empress Hotel (Toronto)
Former namesEdison Hotel
General information
StatusDemolished
Address335 Yonge Street,
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Coordinates 43°39′27″N79°22′52″W / 43.6574°N 79.3810°W / 43.6574; -79.3810 Coordinates: 43°39′27″N79°22′52″W / 43.6574°N 79.3810°W / 43.6574; -79.3810
Opened1888
Demolished2011

The Empress Hotel was a three-storey red-brick building at the corner of Yonge and Gould streets in downtown Toronto. It was destroyed by fire on January 3, 2011. [1] The hotel was opened in 1888. [2] The hotel changed hands several times. [3] The property ceased operating as a hotel in the mid-1970s.

Contents

History

335 Yonge Street housed hotels from 1888, under different owners, to sometime in the 1970s. In the 1960s, it was known as the Edison Hotel and was a major live music venue in Yonge Street's booming Rock n' Roll culture. [4] After the building stopped functioning as a hotel portions were leased by a number of businesses. In 2010, after the property was bought by the Lalani Group, the owners started to demolish the building, only to be stopped when the Toronto city council designated it a protected heritage property on July 16, 2010. [5]

Part of the building's facade collapsed in April, 2010. [5]

Arson and demolition

335 in December 2011, after engineers determined the damage to the building could not be repaired, and the ruins were demolished. Empress Hotel building site at Yonge and Gould after fire.jpg
335 in December 2011, after engineers determined the damage to the building could not be repaired, and the ruins were demolished.

The building was severely damaged by fire on January 3, 2011. [6] At the time, the owners were planning a meeting with the City of Toronto to discuss their strategy for promptly restoring the property. [7] After the building's destruction Heritage Toronto quoted from the intent to designate application describing the building as a "local landmark", and a "well-crafted example of a late 19th century commercial building that blends elements of the popular Second Empire and Romanesque Revival styles of the era." [1]

A security camera captured an individual whose face was obscured by a hood in the vicinity of the building around the time the fire was set. [8]

After an investigation (profiled in The Detectives on CBC Television in 2018), [9] Stewart Poirier was charged with the arson and convicted; he was sentenced to ten years in December 2012. [10] Poirier died of natural causes on February 10, 2013, while incarcerated at the Joyceville Institution. [11]

Eventually, the site was cleared and taken over by developer Rumpf Corporation who was building a commercial property in late 2017, to be owned and managed by Prime Corporation. [12]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Lawrence, Toronto</span> Neighbourhood in Canada, Ontario, Toronto

St. Lawrence is a neighbourhood located in downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The area, a former industrial area, is bounded by Yonge, Front, and Parliament Streets, and the Canadian National railway embankment. The Esplanade off Yonge St., lined with restaurants, cafés and hotels runs through the middle of the area. In previous times, the area was sometimes referred to as 'St. Lawrence Ward' or more often today as 'St. Lawrence Market', synonymous with the large retail vendor market which is the neighbourhood's focal point. The area is the site of a large city-sponsored housing project of the 1970s, which revitalized an old brownfields area. The boundaries of the St Lawrence Neighbourhood Association and the St Lawrence Market BIA are somewhat larger than those noted above. Both groups have boundaries that extend from Yonge to Parliament Streets and Queen Street East to the rail corridor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deer Park, Toronto</span> Neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Deer Park is a neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is centered on the intersection of Yonge Street and St. Clair Avenue and its boundaries are the Vale of Avoca section of Rosedale ravine in the east, Farnham Avenue and Jackes Avenue in the south, Avenue Road and Oriole Parkway in the west, the Beltline Trail in the north on the west side of Yonge Street, and Glen Elm Avenue in the north on the east side of Yonge Street. For the purposes of social policy analysis and research, the Toronto government’s Social Development & Administration division includes Deer Park within the City of Toronto's official "Rosedale-Moore Park" and "Yonge-St.Clair" neighbourhood profiles. The neighbourhood is in Ward 22, represented by Councillor Josh Matlow at Toronto City Council.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sam the Record Man</span> Defunct Canadian record store chain

Sam the Record Man was a Canadian record store chain that, at one time, was Canada's largest music recording retailer. In 1982, its ads proclaimed that it had "140 locations, coast to coast".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Colonial Tavern</span> Canadian jazz venue

The Colonial Tavern was one of the most famous jazz venues in Canada from the 1950s till its closure in the late 1970s. It was located at 201–203 Yonge Street in Toronto, Ontario where a historic plaque remembered this key jazz venue. The Colonial Tavern was owned and managed by brothers-in-law Mike (Myer) G. Lawrence, Goodwin (Goody) and Harvey Lichtenberg. 197–199 Yonge Street and 201–203 Yonge Street were purchased by Sal Parasuco of Montreal, Quebec, who planned to erect a hotel. The properties were sold to MOD Developments of Toronto in January 2012 for the Massey Tower condo project

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Garden District, Toronto</span> Neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada

The Garden District is a neighbourhood in downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The name was selected by the Toronto East Downtown Residents Association (TEDRA) in recognition of Allan Gardens, an indoor botanical garden located nearby at the intersection of Carlton and Jarvis Streets. The Garden District was officially designated by the Mayor and Toronto City Council in 2001, while TEDRA has since been renamed the Garden District Residents Association. Part of the neighbourhood is within official City of Toronto neighbourhood of Moss Park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North York Civic Centre</span>

The North York Civic Centre is a municipal government building in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It opened in 1979 as the city hall of the former city of North York. It is located in North York City Centre.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trader's Bank Building</span> 15-storey early skyscraper (the first in Toronto), completed in 1906 in Toronto, Ontario

Trader's Bank Building is a 15-storey, 55.39 m (181.7 ft) early skyscraper, completed in 1906 at 67 Yonge Street in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The building was designed by Carrère and Hastings, with construction beginning in 1905. It was the tallest building in the British Commonwealth until the Royal Liver Building was completed in 1911. It remains one of Canada's few surviving skyscrapers of the early 20th Century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Carlu</span> Historic site in Ontario, Canada

The Carlu is an historic event space in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Opened in 1930 and known as the eponymous "Eaton's Seventh Floor", the venue was restored and reopened in 2003, renamed for its original architect. The Carlu is one of Toronto's best examples of Art Moderne architecture. The venue is owned by restaurant firm Oliver & Bonacini.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canadian Pacific Building (Toronto)</span> Commercial offices in Toronto, Ontario

The Canadian Pacific Building is a 15-storey highrise at 69 Yonge Street in the city's downtown core of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, designed by the architectural firm of Darling and Pearson. When completed in 1913 as corporate headquarters for the Canadian Pacific Railway, it was the tallest building in Canada and the British Empire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bank of Upper Canada Building</span> Office in Ontario, Canada

The Bank of Upper Canada Building is a former bank building in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and one of the few remaining buildings in Toronto that predate the 1834 incorporation of the city. It is located at 252 Adelaide Street East, in the Old Town district. Opened in 1827, in what was then the town of York, the building housed the Bank of Upper Canada until the bank's collapse in 1866. It was then used for school purposes and later for various commercial and industrial purposes before being restored in 1982 as commercial office space. The building has been designated a National Historic Site of Canada since 1977.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dominion Public Building</span> Building in Toronto, Canada

The Dominion Public Building is a five-storey Beaux-Arts neoclassical office building built between 1926 and 1935 for the government of Canada at southeast corner of Front and Bay streets in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hotel Victoria (Toronto)</span> Historic boutique hotel in Toronto, Ontario

Hotel Victoria is a historic boutique hotel located at 56 Yonge Street in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The hotel opened in 1909 as the Hotel Mossop and was celebrated for being a fireproof building, constructed after Toronto's Great Fire of 1904. It has been designated a Heritage Building by the City of Toronto government.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dineen Building</span>

The Dineen Building is a registered heritage property on Yonge Street, at the corner of Temperance Street, in downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The building was built in 1897, and was extensively renovated in 2012.

Frederick Henry Herbert (1865–1914) was an architect practicing in Toronto, Ontario, during the late 19th century and early 20th century. Several buildings that he designed have survived into the 21st century and have been registered as significant heritage properties. He was one of the city's best-known practitioners specializing in residential architecture at the close of the 19th century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Irwin House</span>

The John Irwin House is a historic structure located in Toronto, one of the oldest surviving residential buildings in its neighbourhood. The house is listed on the City of Toronto government's registry of historic properties. The city describes the house as being an example of "Second Empire" style. The house is located at 21 Grenville Street. That part of the city, east of Queen's Park, was opened for residential development in 1860, and the house was recorded on city records as being owned by John Irwin in 1873.

The Ontario Historical Society is a non-profit organization centred on the preservation of Ontario’s history. It is governed by an all-volunteer board of directors, and its members include individuals as well as historical institutions from across the province of Ontario. It also publishes Ontario History, a scholarly, peer-reviewed journal. From 1899 to 1947, the journal was called Papers and Records. The Ontario Historical Society headquarters are located at the John McKenzie House in the Willowdale neighbourhood of Toronto, Ontario.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The One (Toronto)</span> Supertall skyscraper in Toronto

The One is a supertall skyscraper currently under construction in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. When completed, it will be the tallest building in Canada. At 338 metres and 94 storeys, it will be taller than First Canadian Place, which has been Canada's tallest building since 1976. It will also be Canada's first supertall skyscraper, as defined by the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat. Construction of the building is expected to be completed by 2024.

References

  1. 1 2 "335 Yonge Street (The Empress Hotel) Destroyed by Fire". Heritage Toronto. 2011-01-04. Archived from the original on 2011-08-09. Retrieved 2011-12-06. The property was included on the City of Toronto's Inventory of Heritage Properties in 1974, and was designated last year under the Ontario Heritage Act in response to a demolition application.
  2. ↑ Jamie Bradburn (2011-01-06). "An Empress Hotel Mystery". Torontoist. Archived from the original on 2014-05-17. Retrieved 2011-12-06. In 1888, Richard Dissette leased much of the newly built property at the southeast corner of Yonge and Gould and opened the Empress Hotel, which initially used 339 Yonge as its address.
  3. ↑ Curtis Rush (2011-01-03). "The long and storied history of 335 Yonge St". Toronto Star. Archived from the original on 2011-01-07. Retrieved 2011-12-07. 1947: Edison Hotel Limited purchases the site and retains it until 1991. The hotel, however, operates there only until the 1970s.
  4. ↑ MacDonald, Bruce. "Part 2 (1960-1965): Clip 6". Yonge Street: Toronto Rock & Roll Stories. Toronto: Bravo Canada. Archived from the original (Video) on 2012-01-21. Retrieved 2011-05-14.
  5. 1 2 Amy Dempsey (2010-07-20). "Old Empress Hotel caught in tug-of-war". Toronto Star. Archived from the original on 2012-07-20. Retrieved 2011-12-06. Lilani Group, the company that owns the property, filed a demolition request with Toronto Building on July 2 after its engineers recommended demolition as the best option. But within days counsellors stopped that application by voting to designate the 19th Century building a heritage site. The city will now have its own engineer — an expert on heritage sites — assess the stability of the building.
  6. ↑ Liam Vu (2011-02-07). "Empress Hotel fire ruled as arson". Toronto Star. Archived from the original on 2012-02-06. Retrieved 2011-12-06. Built in 1888, the building at 335 Yonge St. previously housed the Empress Hotel before an early morning fire on Jan. 3 broke out shortly after 4 a.m.
  7. ↑ "New details released in unsolved heritage-building arson".
  8. ↑ "Update: Police release photos of person near site of Yonge St. fire". National Post. 2011-01-07. Archived from the original on 2011-12-07. Retrieved 2011-12-07. Steps away from the collapsed structure at the corner of Yonge and Gould Streets, police officers held up grainy images captured by a surveillance camera of a lone figure approaching the abandoned building just before a six-alarm fire broke out early Monday morning.
  9. ↑ "Season 1 - Episode 6: Burning Season - The Detectives". Archived from the original on 2018-03-08.
  10. ↑ "Toronto's Empress Hotel fire: Serial arsonist jailed 10 years after torching historic site". The Toronto Star. 14 December 2012.
  11. ↑ "Death of Inmate at Joyceville Institution". Correctional Service Canada. Archived from the original on 2018-10-19. Retrieved 2018-10-19.
  12. ↑ "335 Yonge Street - Rumpf Highstreets". Archived from the original on 2018-03-09.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.