Located directly across from Allan Gardens at 355 Sherbourne Street, within the City of Toronto, the proposed redevelopment plans to add a 12-storey residential mid-rise alongside the existing church, containing 100 residential units. The interiors of the original 1887 church would also be renovated to provide modernized facilities for the congregation, while also making it more accessible. The 1912 Sunday School addition will be partially preserved, but its interiors would be heavily modified to accommodate the main lobby of the new residential tower. The original 1887 structure is planned to be retained with some of its additions removed in favour of much needed outdoor amenity space.
The new residential building will wrap around the retained church. The ground floor of the new building will contain several multi-functional community spaces for St Luke’s, as well as complementary service/administrative spaces; there is also a café proposed for the ground floor.
Considerate design, quality of life and accessibility are at the heart of the project’s vision. A third of the new rental homes will be available at below-market-rate. Public gathering space is a keystone of this development with new outdoor spaces, such as the public square in front of the new lobby, and the new community and cultural space inside the buildings.
The mass of the building has been set back from the main road to reduce any shadow impacts on Allan Gardens. The new building also wraps around the retained church to ensure the new building is distinct and subordinate to the retained church.
Accessibility and safety have been considered across the development. One-third of the units are planned to be barrier-free, with further improvements planned to improve accessibility to the heritage church.
As with all Kindred Works projects, sustainability is considered from the outset. The project targets an 80 per cent reduction in embodied carbon against industry standard, and the design uses Passive House principles to enable low energy use throughout the building’s life. This approach extends to residents, too – the apartments will make the most of passive ventilation and daylight to create a healthy living environment.
