200 Annette Street – Alteration to a Heritage Property and Intention to Designate, Part IV, Section 29, Ontario Heritage Act and Authority to Enter Into a Heritage Easement Agreement
Owner is seeking to have City Council approve the alterations to the property at 200 Annette Street, as designed by their Michael Hatch Designs Ltd.
from the city report…
Background
Annette Street Baptist Church
Description
The property at 200 Annette Street is worthy of designation under Part IV, Section 29 of
the Ontario Heritage Act for its cultural heritage value, and meets the criteria for
municipal designation prescribed by the Province of Ontario under the three categories of
design, associative and contextual value. Located on the northeast corner of Annette
Street and High Park Ave, Annette Street Baptist Church (constructed in 1888, with
subsequent additions) is a single-storey church building. The site was listed on the City
of Toronto Inventory of Heritage Properties in 1998.
Statement of Cultural Heritage Value
Annette Street Baptist Church is an institution of historical importance to the West
Toronto Junction community. The area was developed in the 1880s after the Canadian
Pacific Railway opened its West Toronto freight yard, which attracted industry,
residential subdivisions, and institutions including churches. Following the incorporation
of the Village of West Toronto in 1884 (which became the Town of West Toronto
Junction, the Town of Toronto Junction and the City of West Toronto prior to its
annexation by the City of Toronto in 1909), Annette Street Baptist Church opened in
1889 and served the spiritual and social interests of the community for nearly a century.
While Annette Street Baptist Church incorporates elements of the popular architectural
styles of the late 1800s, particularly features from High Victorian Gothic Revival and
Romanesque Revival, its overall character recalls the Arts and Crafts influences of the
late 19th century. While local builder John Turner is credited with its construction, the
design of Annette Street Baptist Church resembles one developed for small-scale
churches by Toronto architect Edmund Burke and published in The Canadian Baptist
magazine in 1886. The exaggerated pitch and flared eaves of the roof were retained in
the design when the structure was extended to the west (1906), with the west entrance
(1920) displaying complementary Arts and Crafts detailing.
Contextually, as a church placed on a corner lot at a major intersection in the
neighbourhood, Annette Street Baptist Church is a landmark in the West Toronto
community. It is an integral part of the collection of churches that contributes to the
character of Annette Street as an institutional corridor where Annette Street Baptist
Church is historically, visually and physically linked to its surroundings.
Heritage Attributes
The heritage attributes of the property at 200 Annette Street are:
200 Annette Street – Alteration to a Heritage Property, Intention to Designate, Part IV, Section 29,
Ontario Heritage Act and Authority to Enter Into a HEA 10
The church building
The scale, form and massing of the rectangular plan that rises one extended storey
above a stone base with window openings, the application of red brick cladding with
brick, stone and wood detailing
The steeply-pitched gable roof with the flared eaves, gabled dormers and, at the
northwest corner, an extended brick chimney
At the southwest and southeast ends, the corner towers with pyramidal roofs, flared
eaves and, on the west tower, brick finials (which have been altered)
The east tower (1888), which contains the original entrance to the church and has
segmental-arched openings with decorative hood moulds
The round-arched openings, many of which are organized by brick buttresses and
contain leaded glass windows
The distinctive round window on the west façade
On the west façade facing High Park Avenue, the single-storey entrance porch with
its steeply-pitched gable roof with flared eaves, oversized wood brackets, halftimbering,
and monumental round-arched entry
The datestone, labelled “A.D. 1888 & 1906” (at the base of the west tower)
The placement and setback of the building on the corner lot
