Former Toronto incinerator building to become community hub

Mayor John Tory announced that TAS, a Toronto-based real estate development company, is the approved long-term head lessee of the 0.85 hectare City-owned Wellington Destructor site at 677 Wellington St. W. The agreement with TAS will see the site turn into a community hub that will be enjoyed by residents and visitors for years to come.

“The Wellington Destructor is a great example of how we are transforming underutilized land to help make our city better,” said Tory. “We’re turning an almost 100-year-old derelict garbage incinerator and waste transfer station, closed in the 1980s, into a 21st century community hub and a public cultural space in our growing downtown. This will be a cultural space and community hub for everyone to enjoy.”

TAS’ project proposal – approved by City Council – will restore the 3,700 square metre vacant heritage building on the site, and incorporate new community and commercial uses that would provide social and economic benefits to the public. The City will contribute up to $32 million to remediate the property, and to retain and restore its heritage structure. This $32 million initial capital contribution will be repaid to the City over the term of the lease. This will be a 49-year lease term with two options for extensions of 25 years each. The City’s investment in the project represents approximately one third of the expected cost of developing the site.

“The Wellington Destructor site presents an important opportunity to repurpose a historically significant but underutilized City-owned building,” said Steven Trumper, CEO of CreateTO. “The long-term lease arrangement with TAS, adopted by Council today, will return this site to public use and breathe new life into this heritage building, creating a hub for the surrounding community.”

Constructed in 1925, the Wellington Destructor heritage building is a purpose-built brick garbage incinerator that was in active use until the incineration of solid waste was halted in the mid-1970s. It became a waste transfer station until the 1980s. The transfer station has been decommissioned and left vacant for decades. The property was listed on the City’s Heritage Register in 2005 by City Council and is subject to policies for its conservation.

TAS is a privately-owned, Toronto-based mixed use real estate development company focused on the development and operation of residential and mixed-use buildings. TAS has completed several major developments with a combined value of over $300 million, and currently has approximately 500,000 square metres under development with a market value of $3 billion.

Featured image:  Rendering of the Wellington Destructor Proposal, TAS – View from Wellington Street West. (City of Toronto)