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The Bloor-Yorkville area is currently one of the busiest development nodes in the city, with plenty of high-rise and mid-rise projects rising throughout the area. West of Yorkville's Avenue Road edge, the East Annex shares many characteristics with its neighbour, including quaint Victorian houses and high property values… but thanks to zoning, development in the East Annex Heritage Conservation District is substantially less intense than in Yorkville. Redevelopment is happening though, like in the case of 17 Prince Arthur, a two-storey 19th-century mansion just west of Avenue Road, currently being expanded with a new addition by Diamond Schmitt Architects for the Next Property Group.
The east end of Prince Arthur Avenue was developed earlier than the west end, with buildings utilizing wider lots with generous front and back yards. This leaves considerable space around the heritage buildings themselves for redevelopment, as is the case at 17 Prince Arthur. The original structure, designated as part of the East Annex Heritage Conservation District in 1994 and protected from demolition, has been restored as office space in the redevelopment, which adds over 8,000 square feet of new space in a four-storey addition at the rear of the property. The back looks out upon a Green-P parking lot and the backs of Bloor Street buildings across from the ROM.
The new building, which is connected to the existing two-storey heritage building, is clad on the north (Prince Arthur) elevation with a glass curtain wall, on its east and west sides with a zinc cladding, and ribbon windows with zinc spandrel panels on the south elevation.
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