[M II A II R II K]

A thread to discuss heritage issues.

[ldoto]

DOWNTOWN



A long-vacant property in the heart of downtown has been deemed structurally unsafe, though the building's long history of decay and deterioration could soon reach a happy ending.

Just weeks after city officials issued a mandatory repair order for 142 Dundas St. -- a move that can result in a building's demolition -- the century-old structure near the John Labatt Centre has been purchased by new owners intent on fixing it up quickly.

"It's just an extraordinary building and it fully deserves the restoration it's about to receive," said Peter Mullins, the realtor who brokered the sale of the three-storey building.

"It's wonderful."

The building's pre-sale plight, though, was anything but.




It has been empty for more than a decade -- its last tenant was a Grandma Lee's restaurant -- and damage from a fire several years ago has still not been fully repaired, say city officials who posted a public safety warning on the building's windows last month.

Mullins, who listed the property for $150,000, says the new owners will take advantage of the ground floor that fronts both Dundas and Carling streets -- turning the former into a retail space and the latter into offices.

The previous owners were from outside London.

It's rare for a downtown property to be declared structurally unsound but the move in this case by city officials underscores what could become a growing problem among the core's aging building stock, said Janette MacDonald of MainStreet London.

As the old, empty commercial properties age further, she said, the main concern for downtown boosters like her could shift more and more from getting them occupied to simply keeping them safe.

The challenge, she said, is some owners bought downtown buildings in the 1960s, '70s and '80s hoping to realize huge profits as the property values skyrocketed -- except the values have steadily gone the other direction.

"That's our biggest challenge -- convincing people who paid too much on these to reinvest in them," MacDonald said. "If you do invest in it, the value will return."

To illustrate her point, MacDonald noted a downtown building that sold in 1975 for $775,000 and years later was seized by a bank, eventually hitting the market for $175,000.

But by 2003, with a solid tenant, it sold for $248,000 and after $150,000 in renovations was appraised in 2007 for $548,000.

"The value will go up but there has to be investment," she said.

So-called "orders to make safe" like the one issued by city hall against 142 Dundas St. make repairs mandatory for the owner, who may face legal action and fines of as much as $100,000 if they're not done "in a timely manner."

The ultimate decision, made by the city's chief building official, is to order a building demolished, said Frank Galera, a city building inspector.

City-wide, about one structure is ordered demolished each month, Galera said, noting the most recent case is an abandoned Lorne Ave. home that was razed in recent days.

[manny_santos]

As long as it doesn't turn into another parking lot, I'm happy. Dundas Street needs its streetscape.