Christopher Borgal of GBCA architects has kindly written to clarify some elements of our post earlier this week that the Coca Cola bottling plant at 46 Overlea Blvd. was being demolished. Mr. Borgal says his firm was retained to offer an opinion on the heritage status of the 1965 office building at 42 Overlea. His mail says: “A Heritage Impact Assessment was prepared by GBCA for the office building at 42 Overlea and, while we noted that there are some interesting attributes to the structure, on balance the major benefits to the community — which will be a political decision — may reside in the proposed redevelopment of the site. The report also recommends incorporating the Yarwood sculpture that you feature in the article into a community space for all of Thorncliffe Park to enjoy and supports the retention of the granite wall that is featured at the front of the existing building. Please note, however, that the office building at 42 Overlea is not designated at the moment — it is currently on the City’s Inventory of Heritage Buildings but has not been deemed of sufficient interest to designate under the Ontario Heritage Act. In addition, there has been no application for demolition of the office building.” The South Bayview Bulldog is really pleased to have this general clarification and to be corrected in regard to the office building status. It is always gratifying to receive first-hand information from professional people who have special knowledge of such situations. Our statement that there was “a request” to demolish the office building was a little loose perhaps because what we intended to say was that the building will be demolished if the Costco proposal is accepted and a permit issued. It would be very surprising indeed if anyone presumed to knock down the office building at this interim stage. Previous posts on the Coke site describe some of the points raised by Mr. Borgal. In particular the decision to save and locate the Yarwood sculpture in a place of honour in any new development. See especially post headlined “100,000 sq ft of green space at Overlea Costco.”
