Home of the Week: Neighbourhood makes Junction house a home
Home of the Week, 76 Edwin Ave., Toronto. Asking Price: $749,900. When Erum Hasan found 76 Edwin Ave. three years ago she was in a bit of a complicated situation. A few months earlier, she had bought a place in the Upper Beaches. The other complication: She was six months pregnant. ‘I wasn’t really planning to buy a house at that point,” she said. “But it was completely renovated and from the upstairs I could see the CN Tower, and I just realized that I wanted to live there.’Peter Riedel
Even though she was basically a stranger to the Junction, her neighbours welcomed her family with open arms. Ms. Hasan recalls fondly how they left her gifts and shovelled the snow so her pregnancy move was as comfortable as possible.Peter Riedel
Ms. Hasan fit nicely into the area’s growing demographic of young, urban parents with little kids. Lori Bennett, Ms. Hasan’s broker, describes the area as “up and coming,” and likens its vibe to that of Leslieville a few years ago, before it became one of Toronto’s trendiest ’hoods.Peter Riedel
The whole house was renovated just before Ms. Hasan purchased it, including the basement. The first floor is all about entertaining. The living room-dining room area is laid out in an open-concept format with bamboo floors running through them.Peter Riedel
The kitchen island is perfect for quick meals and has plenty of storage space.Peter Riedel
All and all, the house is a mix of old and new, Ms. Bennett says. ‘It is a Victorian house, but even though it’s 100 years old it doesn’t feel like it’s that old,’ she said. ‘It has a new feeling to it [because of the renovations], but it’s kept its integrity.’Photos by peter Riedel
Renovators balanced out the need for open space on the first floor by taking out some walls but preserved the second-floor layout.Peter Riedel
For Ms. Hasan, it’s the new design of the top floor, the master suite, which is her favourite space in the house. The whole floor has been transformed into one big bedroom. From one end of the room you can see the CN Tower and from the other you can walk out onto your own private deck. ‘It is such a private space, even on the deck. That’s because of the big trees all around you,’ she said. ‘You don’t see anyone, hear anyone. You’re totally enclosed even though you’re in an urban setting.’Peter Riedel
The thing Ms. Hasan will miss the most? Her master bath, which she refers to as her ‘oasis’.Peter Riedel