Background
The property was sold by the former owners, the Basilian Fathers, to a developer in August of 2023. The City was advised of the sale days before that happened. The City is a tenant of the owners and leases a portion of the property that includes the Carmine Stefano Community Centre, parking lot and soccer fields.
The property is listed on the Heritage Register which offers some protection. A Heritage Impact Assessment is required for a complete Planning Act application and if a demolition application was received by the City, staff would have 60 days to evaluate and designate the property with a Heritage Designation, if merited. None has been received to date.
What does Anthony’s motion do?
https://secure.toronto.ca/council/agenda-item.do?item=2023.MM10.5
Councillor Perruzza’s motion is the first step to the entire site at 3100 Weston Rd receiving a heritage designation. Staff in the City’s Heritage Division are still determining a timeline for how long the evaluation of 3100 Weston Road will take.
In the meantime, here is the process:
- The Councillor’s motion in September 2023, requests staff to prioritize the evaluation of 3100 Weston Road. That’s the very beginning of the process.
- Staff will research and evaluate the property to determine if it merits designation under the Ontario Heritage Act. To do so, a property must meet two of the provincial criteria stated in Regulation 9/06. This is a rigorous process, which people can learn more about here.
- If the property is determined to merit designation, a Staff report will be drafted to recommend its designation to the Toronto City Council. That report will provide evidence for why the property merits designation and will also define the heritage features (or attributes) of the property.
- The Staff report will first go to the Toronto Preservation Board, which provides advice to the City Council. Community members can submit letters or depute to the Toronto Preservation Board.
- After the Toronto Preservation Board, Staff reports recommending properties for designation go before the Planning and Housing Committee. Community members can submit letters or depute to the Planning and Housing Committee. If adopted by the Planning and Housing Committee, the Staff report and its recommendations will go to the Toronto City Council for consideration.
- If the Toronto City Council adopts the recommendation to designate a property, the property is designated under the Ontario Heritage Act.
- Following the Council’s decision to designate a property, the designation can still be appealed to the Ontario Land Tribunal, which will make a final decision on the matter.
What can we do next?
LINK: https://www.anthonyperruzza.com/save_the_marian_shrine
Continue to circulate the petitions as these are helpful to show the widespread support for the shrine and all elements of the site. If you can, continue to attend the site for prayers and peaceful protest. Please keep our office informed of major issues or changes on site, especially including any suspected construction and if you have difficulty accessing City leased facilities, like the parking lot, community centre or soccer fields.
Councillor Perruzza is continuing to advocate for the protection of the shrine by communicating with various stakeholders including City Staff, the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (TRCA) and the new owner.
