By Pamela Vega

On the west side of Yonge Street, south of St. Clair, there is a break between the row of buildings lining the street. Walking down this small alley, the brick walls give way to grass and, a little further on, a walkway lined with trees. Nestled behind a wall of storefronts is this serene escape from city life. This is St. Michael's Cemetery, Toronto's oldest visible Catholic cemetery. The first in a series of articles, St. Michael's is one of Toronto's hidden gems.

A new website allows people in Ontario communities to report heritage buildings and sites they feel are at risk.

This Place Matters documents heritage at risk and buildings that matter using an interactive map, photos and videos. A project spearheaded by Lloyd Alter of the Architectural Conservancy of Ontario, the website is in beta mode and will include mobile networking capabilities in the near future.

To report a building at risk, click here. 

By Jamie Bradburn

Visitors to Chorley Park in northeast Rosedale may notice a cul-de-sac off Douglas Drive that seems out of place with the surrounding greenery and the serenity of local residents enjoying a rest on a bench. Beside this road is a plaque commemorating the tumultuous history of the building that once occupied much of the grounds. The half-century saga of Chorley Park saw the main building go from a magnificent manor for government dignitaries to a crumbling ruin deemed too expensive to maintain. Along the way the site was embroiled in government scandals, war efforts, schemes to find a lasting function, and the city's unending and ultimately successful effort to buy the property for its current use.

Chorley Park, residence of Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, 1923. City of Toronto Archives, Fonds 1231, Item 79

We hope you'll join thousands of Torontonians for this year's Doors Open.

150 buildings of architectural, historic, cultural and/or social significance open their doors to the public and admission is FREE. 

To see a list of participating buildings, click here.

Heritage Toronto is a founding partner of Doors Open, one of Toronto's most popular events. In recent years, Heritage Toronto volunteers have welcomed visitors to sites such as BCE Place, St. Lawrence Hall and the Toronto Dominion Centre Penthouse. 

Today, Deputy Mayor Joe Pantalone and Councillor Pam McConnell officially unveiled the five short-listed competing designs in the St. Lawrence Market North Building Design Competition. In February 2010, five design teams were selected from a field of 30 to compete in Stage 2 of the competition and develop full architectural building designs.

The five short-listed teams that are presenting design concepts for this competition are:
Adamson Associates Architects and Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners
Cohos Evamy + Hotson Bakker Boniface Haden Architects
Kuwabara Payne McKenna Blumberg Architects
NORR Limited, Architects Engineers Planners
Taylor Hazell Architects and Montgomery Sisam

In mid-May, a jury of seven distinguished members will evaluate the five short-listed submissions and choose a winning design. The competition winner will be announced on June 7, and until then, each of the designs are anonymous, identified only by a designated colour to ensure fairness and equity in judging.

By Nicholas Thompson