Commissioned in 1875 by clothing manufacturer William R. Johnston, and designed by prominent local architectural firm Langley, Langley & Burke, the former residence at 571 Jarvis is a significant visual reminder of the affluence and grandeur of Jarvis Street during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Both the exterior and interior of the historic building are designated under the Ontario Heritage Act as well as being protected by a heritage easement agreement (HEA). The interior is characterized by striking historic details, including original fireplaces, elaborate ceiling plasterwork, leaded glass windows, and encaustic tile floors. The property was redeveloped by Casey House in 2015 into an award winning, state-of-the-art AIDS/HIV healthcare facility that integrates the original building with a new four-storey “warm modern” extension by Hariri-Pontarini Architects.

ERA worked closely with Hariri-Pontarini on the massing and material palette of the new extension, ensuring that the character of the contemporary building augmented and responded to the Victorian architecture. ERA also coordinated extensively with the design team on the interfacing details required to connect the two volumes into a shared “home”. Accessibility solutions, structural modifications, complex building service distribution, and healthcare standards were integrated in a thoughtful manner that preserves the character of the historic building.

ERA’s expertise in heritage conservation and adaptive reuse was brought to peel back the layers of alterations and unsympathetic treatments from the building to painstakingly restore what had been lost integrate stringent hospital requirements. ERA worked closely with trade specialists to preserve and repair all aspects of the original Victorian house, including the red brick and sandstone exterior, leaded glass windows, elaborate plaster cornices, and extensive woodwork elements on the interior. This was paired with integrating significant changes to the original building, including within those areas protected by HEAs to provide for accessibility, and so that the building could better serve its new-long term sustainable use.