justice served
Yonge and St. Clair 423 Avenue Rd. #11 (Avenue Road and St. Clair Avenue) Asking price: $1.089 million Taxes: $4,255 (2015) Monthly fee: $2,067 Bedrooms: 2 Bathrooms: 2 MLS # C3325660
When they would drive along Avenue Road on their way from their office to the courthouse downtown, detectives Mike and Margo Boyd would admire the sleek building at 423 Avenue Rd. “We first saw the building in 1981. We heard about a building with a 360-degree view,” Boyd says.
They had never been in it until they decided to move from the suburbs to downtown, preferring a five-minute commute to jobs that had them working six or seven days a week. Margo was Canada’s first female homicide detective. In the 1980s, Mike served as a homicide detective, and was deputy chief of Toronto Police Services for nine years.
The couple wanted a quiet, safe place to call home. They also wanted something unique. “There was a lot of sameness in buildings. We wanted something different,” she says. They spoke to their real estate agent, who knocked on doors at 423 and found someone willing to sell. They bought in 1997.
About five years later they did a gut reno, turning the warren of small rooms into a sunny, open-concept unit. The master bedroom was moved from the back to the front so the couple could awaken to a view of Casa Loma. They spend a lot of time relaxing in the solarium with a morning coffee or an end-of-the-day cocktail; it’s accessible from the master bedroom and living room.
When it was built in 1962, today’s must-have features weren’t important, but “we wanted a grand ensuite bathroom, wood floors and a wonderful kitchen to cook in,” she says.
Rooms were designed to make the most of the views — the kitchen island is a place where Margo can prepare meals while gazing out a window. “I don’t need a television. I can watch the world go by,” she says.
When dinner guests step out of the elevator and into the foyer, they may be too polite to give in to the urge but each wants to make a beeline to the dining room to claim their spot at the table. The couple usually enter- tains six to eight people. “The table seats 12 and faces south. Guests always want to sit facing out,” Mike says.
The master bedroom has a five-piece ensuite bathroom with a large separate shower and a soaker tub. The second bedroom and three-piece ensuite are in a separate wing. The guest wing has a separate screened balcony.
Renovations and window treatments for the 1,724-squarefoot suite cost more than $270,000, says listing agent Tim Bosworth of Brad J. Lamb Realty.
The quiet living space and building have offered a haven for their busy lives. They chose the building for its location, privacy and safety. They also say they love being within walking distance of Rosedale, Yonge and St. Clair, and Yorkville.
All of the owners in the New York-style 15-storey building have worked together to make constant improvements to 423, raising almost $2 million to restore the building, Bosworth says.