The collection of early-to-mid-20th-century commercial and industrial buildings would have in theory been protected by the King-Spadina HCD established in 2016.
If that wasn't enough, further protection was added when 12 and 18 Camden were
added to the City's Heritage Register in 2017.
It turns out none of these protections were enough to save the buildings: The demolition permits actually predate the HCD's establishment by just a few weeks, exempting the buildings from preservation. The Heritage Register listing also came far too late.
City councillor Joe Cressy tells blogTO, "My office heard concerns from neighbours about these demolitions, and I asked Toronto Buildings to send inspectors and look into the issue. The preliminary response that I received from Toronto Buildings is that there appear to be valid demolition permits in the system for these locations, dating back from 2016. However, I am awaiting any further updates following the inspections."
"Early Saturday morning crews and equipment started to simultaneously demolish five properties on Camden Street," said Valerie Eggertson, Secretary and Founder of the GDNA. "The GDNA immediately contacted its Councillor's office and received information that those properties indeed had demolition permits."
