It appears that a proposed development, which had threatened the future of an iconic downtown restaurant and dive bar, is no longer moving forward.
Documents submitted on Friday to Toronto and East York Community Council by the developer indicate they no longer wish to go ahead with a proposed 16-storey development at Bathurst and College streets, which has been home to Sneaky Dee’s for the past 36 years.
A letter from Michael Goldberg, the principal of the Goldberg Group, which is behind the development, says they have been instructed to “formally withdraw the subject application” from the July 8 Community Council agenda.
No reason was given for the decision, but a subsequent letter sent by Globe Realty Holdings Ltd., which is a subsidiary of RBC, claims a parcel of land that is part of the proposal is owned by the bank and that they have not been approached about being part of the redeveloped site.
“RBC has no agreement of purchase and sale or any agreement of any kind with respect to disposal of its lands at 429 College Street,” reads the letter, which also points out that RBC currently operates a retail branch at the site in question “and intends to carry on with this use.”
“On the basis of the foregoing, RBC objects to the recommendations in the Planning Division report and to any official plan redesignation and/or zoning amendment on these lands.”
Community members passionately defended the future of the bar in late May during a meeting at City Hall, and local councillor Dianne Saxe agreed to work with the group to try and find a solution that would satisfy all of the stakeholders. However, she cautioned that any decision to stop the development would likely be futile.
“We have the power to refuse the application, but it doesn’t stop the application, because the [Ontario Land Tribunal] is full of pro-development people and the rules have been stacked against us so that almost all the time, if the city turns something down, the Ontario Land Tribunal approves it anyway, and quite often, they make it worse,” she said during the May meeting.
The developer said at the time the venue would be allowed to return to a new 1,200-square metre basement space.
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