Originally, Croft Street was a significant north/south thoroughfare connecting Bloor Street to College. As the area around it became more developed, it took on many of the functions typical of Toronto lanes, such as the provision of garages and vehicular access to the houses flanking Croft east and west; however, a number of houses, coach houses, and warehouses remain that reflect the street’s previous primacy.

No. 16 Croft Street is part of a larger building that was converted into five freehold residences. Prior to the renovation, it housed a Turkish rug cleaning business that had been in operation since the 1920s. Before that, the building was a munitions factory during the First World War. A group of people (all the end users), purchased the warehouse in 1987 with the intention of converting it to live/work spaces. The existing building had 10,000 square feet of open space, on two floors, with windows on all four sides. The masonry walls are a mix of clay brick on the two exterior wythes and concrete brick on the third, interior course. The structural system is a combination of timber and steel beams, and mill-flooring decking throughout. There is no at-grade outside space on the property, as the property lines mirror the floor plate of the building.

The proposed conversion from existing non-conforming use to residential was turned down at the Committee of Adjustment in the fall of 1987. It was appealed and approved at the Ontario Municipal Board in the spring of 1988.

The building was divided vertically to create five equal houses, each with a total area of about 2,000 square feet. Three large arches were cut out of the front masonry wall on Croft Street and five parking spots were carved into the previously interior ground floor area. The newly created exterior space also provided a recessed entry area and storage facilities for each house. The square footage removed from the ground floor to provide access and parking was “relocated” as a continuous strip along the mid-third of the existing roof. The new party walls defining each house were continued up through this volume, making a new third-floor room flanked on either side by decks. The siting and massing of the third-floor volume was designed to minimize the impact on the neighbouring houses, both in respect to privacy and shadows.

The ground floor of 16 Croft Street was designed to work as an independent office or apartment, with its own entrance. A double-height space at the back half of the space was created to allow for a small sleeping loft above the washroom/laundry/storage area. In addition, there is a large foyer and stair, separated from the ground-floor apartment, that serves as the entrance to the second unit above.

The second floor is organized into two distinct areas defined by the placement of stairs and other “objects” that create various degrees of enclosure. Changes in the floor levels/ceiling heights mark the transition between the two areas. The public precinct accommodates the dining room, living room, kitchen, and small sitting area, and has 14-foot ceilings. The private zone is up three steps and contains the bathroom and two bedrooms. The ceilings in this area are eight feet high, with the windows set low to the floor. A staircase leading up to the third floor defines the edge of the double-height volume of the kitchen, and provides a visual anchor separating the floor space into smaller areas. The orientation of this space, relative to the glazing, insures that the middle section of the floor plate receives natural light all day long.

The stair up terminates at a bridge-like element straddling the double-height volume that begins in the kitchen and ends in the dining room. This space was created using the remaining walls of the old elevator shaft. From one side of the bridge, there is a spectacular view towards downtown Toronto. From the other, one overlooks the kitchen and bedrooms beyond. One step up from the “bridge” is the finished third-floor family room. The east/west walls of the third floor are made up of oversized sliding doors that lead out to a deck on either side. The vaulted form of the roof is echoed in the profile of the ceiling. At either end, it drops down to meet a lower, orthogonal bulkhead. These mark the threshold between outside and in. The character of the two exterior spaces was developed to exploit their different orientations. The east deck is more intimate and is finished with uncalibrated slate and built-in planters. The west side is cedar-clad and contains the barbecue and a large seating area.

Janna Levitt